


Processing

by puppybusby



Series: Snapshots [4]
Category: Warrior Nun (TV)
Genre: Accidental Choking, F/F, Found Family, Making Out, Nightmares, Praise Kink, Sharing a Bed, Sleepy Cuddles, Training, as a treat, ava processes a lot of trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:55:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 35,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29069901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/puppybusby/pseuds/puppybusby
Summary: "Oh my god." Ava gasped. She doubled over to rest her hands on her knees. "Oh my god I think I'm dying.""Why are you all muddy?" Beatrice asked."Tried to use halo for speed. Mistakes were made." Ava closed her eyes. "Holy shit. Training looks easier in the movies. Stupid montage scenes. Fucking Rocky and his song.""Ava-""Sorry. Everything hurts right now." She straightened up with a groan. "Hi."
Relationships: Sister Beatrice/Ava Silva
Series: Snapshots [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2090595
Comments: 94
Kudos: 368





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello i am back my life has been a relative shit show and writing for these nerds is the thread i am hanging from
> 
> also considering it was supposed to be a filler oneshot... i have gone on brand and Not Done That. Hello at least 2 chapters

"Could we not at least wait until the sun is up?" Ava asked. 

The cold didn't usually bother her, definitely not to the extent it bothered Beatrice, but when Lilith quite literally dragged her out of bed this morning it had taken a lot of effort on her part to not kick the girl. 

It was only because she knew Lilith would have thrown her off the balcony that kept Ava from acting out. 

Lilith stretched her arms over her head and looked at the path ahead. 

"Because the sun won't be up for another couple of hours and if you're serious about training we aren't going to waste any time." 

Now that was an understatement. 

They'd only gotten to the house late the night before and all immediately retired to bed. 

Ava had tried to sleep, she really had. But it had taken hours of tossing and turning before sleep had finally claimed her. 

She was sure it was because Beatrice hadn't been with her. 

From what Mary had told them, there were three bedrooms, Camila and Lilith had opted to share one while Mary took the other. 

Beatrice had refused to let Ava sleep on a floor or sofa for another night and had firmly (but not without fondness) sent Ava up to bed. 

As her and Lilith snuck out of the house, Ava had only gotten the briefest glance of her girlfriend nestled under a blanket. 

"I am serious." Ava replied.

Lilith raised an eyebrow. 

"As serious as I'm capable of being right now." Ava added after a moment of consideration. 

"So we're going to start with stamina. We'll run down to the Loch, break for ten then make our way back up."

From what little Ava could see with the light of the moon, the path was narrow and heavily packed with trees. 

It also seemed like it sloped down, which would make the first half slightly less painful. 

Ava slipped her thumbs into the holes of her hoody and pulled her hood up. 

"I guess I'm ready then." Ava said. 

Famous last words. 

\--

"Ava, get up." 

"No. This is my home now." 

She knew she was being childish. Her limbs were on fire and the frozen ground was the only thing that soothed her muscles. 

But Lilith was trying to kill her with exercise. 

A light rain had started to fall as the sky began to brighten. It felt like a balm on her exposed skin. 

She heard Lilith sigh heavily and the sound of footsteps approaching. 

"I get it." Lilith said. "Sometimes I forget that you haven't had experience with fitness." 

Ava groaned as she rolled onto her back and met Lilith's gaze. "I got really good at moving one of my fingers." 

Lilith crouched slightly beside her. "You're a fast learner, these first couple of days are going to be hard and it may feel like we're pushing you too far but know that I'm not doing it out of unkindness." 

She looked thoughtful for a brief moment and sighed again, softer this time as she cast her eyes out to the water in front of them. 

"Last time I was unfair to you. I was trying to prove that you weren't good enough for this and I'm sorry." 

The apology came out of nowhere and for a moment, Ava forgot about the pain in her body and sat up. 

"I thought we'd already moved on from this?" Ava asked. "You apologised before and I forgave you. Besides, I was kind of a little shit back then." 

Lilith smirked as she sat down. "You're still a little shit now." 

"True." Ava grinned. "But now you totally find it endearing." 

"Shut up." 

Ava twisted to look out to the loch, a mist has settled across the water. A hauntingly peaceful sight. 

She had to make sure to come here with Beatrice, except it would definitely not involve running. 

"I'm going to complain a lot." Ava said. "And I might put up some resistance, so I'm going to apologise in advance for that. But I promise I'll do my best." 

"I can't believe I'm about to say this but… Maybe we can make it a bit more fun for you." 

That definitely sounded better already. 

"Oh?" 

"Not as fun as anything Beatrice could offer mind you." 

Ava snorted and ducked her head. "Okay, easy." 

It was still strange to have Lilith teasing her, especially when Beatrice was involved, but Ava didn't mind quite as much. 

But she still wasn't about to let Lilith get away with it. 

"So how's sleeping with Camila? Are you the little spoon?" 

"Hey, wait-" 

"So, what kind of fun new training are we talking about?" Ava asked quickly. 

She knew that it would escalate if she didn't change the subject. 

Thankfully, Lilith seemed to agree. 

"Oh I'm not saying anything." Lilith got to her feet. "Not until we get back to the house, consider it your motivation." 

Ava followed her and felt her muscles groan in protest. 

"My motivation is absolutely kicking your ass racing you here before we leave." 

Lilith grinned. "Now  _ that  _ sounds like fun. Try and keep up." 

She turned and broke into a sprint, leaving Ava to gape. 

"Before we leave! I said before we leave!" Ava yelled. 

She was sure that Lilith was using her powers too. 

"Okay buddy." Ava looked over her shoulder and felt the soft whir of the halo. "Let's make like Sonic and go fast." 

She started to run as she tried to channel the energy into her feet, she'd done it before, though not intentionally. 

The halo burst, the force of it sending Ava a few feet forward before she toppled over, crashing to the ground hard. 

"Okay, it's like that then is it?" Ava groaned. 

This was going to be harder than she thought. 

\--

Beatrice was in the process of folding her blanket and draping it across the back of the sofa when Camila stumbled into the living room. 

Compared to their cottage, this house almost felt too big. It lacked the comfort of their last home, but with what very little she had seen of the scenery they were gifted with, Beatrice couldn't complain. 

"Morning Bea." Camila greeted brightly. 

Beatrice barely stifled a yawn. "Good morning." 

Camila frowned. "Did you not sleep well?" 

"New environment. It might take some time to get used to." 

She didn't want to think that it was because Ava hadn't been with her. 

But at least Ava had a bed to sleep in now. 

A very brief and almost guilty look flashed over Camila's face, though she disguised it quickly under a smile as she glanced towards the door. 

"Have they come back yet?" 

"Who?" 

"Lilith dragged Ava out earlier for a run. Hitting the ground running, literally, with her training." 

Ava would have appreciated that pun. 

She definitely couldn't imagine Ava appreciating a run before the sun had even shown itself. 

"I haven't heard anyone come back." Beatrice said. 

As soon as the words left her mouth, the front door opened and Lilith stepped through, a little breathless but otherwise fine. 

"Where's Ava?" 

Lilith looked over her shoulder and frowned. 

"We raced, she'll be here soon." Lilith pulled off her hoody. "You may need to encourage her with food." 

"Eggs? I feel like making eggs." Camila said. 

"Sounds good to me. I'll freshen up, wake Mary and come help." Lilith glanced at Beatrice. "I'm guessing you're going to go make sure she hasn't fallen in a ditch?" 

"Am I that predictable?" Beatrice asked. 

"Yes, but it's cute." 

Beatrice sighed as she moved to the hallway to slip her shoes on and grabbed her jacket from the hook as she stepped outside. 

There was a path leading from the front of the house down into the forest. It had been dark when they arrived but even then she knew just how isolated they were from everybody else.

They truly were hidden away here. 

She felt a few stray drops of rain against the back of her neck as she took a few steps towards the tree line. 

It took a few moments of careful listening, but soon enough she heard distant footfalls. 

A minute passed and Ava came stumbling into view, her pace wasn't quite a jog, but judging from the flushed skin and strands of hair stuck to her forehead, she had definitely tried. 

"Oh my god." Ava gasped. She doubled over to rest her hands on her knees. "Oh my god I think I'm dying." 

"Why are you all muddy?" Beatrice asked. 

"Tried to use halo for speed. Mistakes were made." Ava closed her eyes. "Holy shit. Training looks easier in the movies. Stupid montage scenes. Fucking Rocky and his song." 

"Ava-" 

"Sorry. Everything hurts right now." She straightened up with a groan. "Hi." 

"Hi." Beatrice approached her slowly. "Lilith really put you through it, huh?" 

"We're committing to the whole thing. I think I'm in for a world of pain." 

Beatrice reached for Ava, brushing the hair back from her face. 

"It'll get easier, the halo should help you too and we'll be there to help you through it." 

"Yeah, speaking of, hey halo? Whenever you're ready to take the ache away that'd be great thanks." 

"Will it make you feel better if I tell you that Camila is making eggs right now?" 

"What kind? Wait no, I don't care, all egg is good egg." Ava grinned. "Definitely a start." 

Beatrice smiled. "I do know something else that might help?" 

"I'm listening?" 

Beatrice leaned in tilting her head at the last moment to press their lips together in a brief kiss. 

Ava hummed happily as they broke apart. "I'd choose that over eggs any day." 

Her stomach rumbled. 

"Traitor." Ava muttered to her stomach. 

Beatrice laughed and reached for Ava's hand. "Come on, we've got a long day ahead of us, you're going to need your strength." 

\--

"So Ava, your call, what do you want to do after breakfast?" Mary asked. 

Ava paused, forkful of egg hovering from her mouth. 

"I'm guessing a shower and a nap is out of the question?" 

"Worth a try, but you're right." 

Ava sighed. "What are my options?" 

"Hand to hand, firearms, some work on swordplay and other weapons." Mary said. 

"We also need to put some time aside to work on your control with the halo." Beatrice added. "Though it's probably best to save that for towards the end of the day." 

"Right, just in case I drain it." Ava shoved the eggs in her mouth. "Unnecessary delay and all that."

Beatrice gave her a steady look.

"It's not about delays, Ava." She said softly. "This is about making sure you don't push yourself too hard." 

"Is this really how we're going to spend the day?" Ava asked. 

She really was trying not to sound petulant, truly she was. 

"For today, yes. We'll see how it goes and makes adjustments." Lilith said. "We will try to make it less gruelling for you where possible." 

She wasn't pouting. 

Honestly. 

(Maybe a little.) 

"Firearms then, please." Ava said. "Unless that means you're going to shoot me." 

"Depends on if you behave." Mary replied. "That means you're with me. We'll finish and I'll go get set up, you guys going to spar?" 

Ava watched as Beatrice and Camila shared an almost nervous look before they both glanced at Lilith. 

"Looks like it." Camila said. 

\--

Beatrice’s back hit the tree as Camila pushed herself up from the ground.

“Time out, please.” Camila gasped.

Lilith relaxed her stance and looked to each of them. “Good work you two.”   
  
“I’ll beat you one day.” Beatrice said, brushing the sweat from her forehead. 

She knew that had Lilith not using her powers, she wouldn’t struggle so much. Beatrice had always been the fastest of them up until then, she knew all of Lilith’s weak spots but now she couldn’t seem to get to them fast enough to land a solid hit. 

In the distance, they could hear gunshots and Beatrice couldn’t help but wonder how Ava was getting on. 

“We should have asked Ava what she wanted to do next.” Camila said as she pulled herself up and rested her back against a tree. “Will you be okay if she wants to spar?”   
  
Beatrice nodded. “I’ll be fine. In the grand scheme of things, whatever we do is nothing compared to what we’re putting Ava through.” 

Beatrice couldn’t help but worry that they were pushing Ava too far already. She didn’t feel particularly thrilled about the way Ava had tried so hard to hide how unenthusiastic she looked when they had been discussing it over breakfast too.    
  
“I told Ava I’d try to make training more fun where I could, though I can only really see that working when it comes to helping her with the halo.” Lilith said. “So any ideas are welcome.”   
  
“She was trying to use the halo to run faster earlier, you could turn that into a game somehow?” Beatrice suggested.    
  
“Plus with her phasing and your teleporting, you could probably make it into some kind of hide and seek or capture the flag.” Camila added. 

“Not terrible ideas.” Lilith agreed. “What are we supposed to do for weapons training? She needs to learn swordplay but we don’t exactly have the same equipment as we did in Cat’s Cradle.” 

“Not going to lie, I was fully prepared to just use some big sticks today.” Camila admitted. 

“That isn’t particularly safe for you.” Beatrice frowned.    
  
“She’d have to be able to hit me.” Camila grinned. “But yeah, I’ll look online later and see if I can find anything, but it’ll get the job done for now.”   
  
The gunfire eased.

“They’ll be heading back now, I think.” Lilith said. “We should head up.”

\--

Ava couldn’t help but grin as Beatrice approached her.    
  
“I’m sparring with you?”   
  
“Is that okay?”   
  
“Best news I’ve had all day, to be honest.” Ava replied.

Rather than head back down into the forest, the pair made their way through the house and into the backyard, much to Ava’s joy.

She already felt as though she was running on fumes, and the constant back and forth into the trees didn’t help. 

“How was weapons training with Camila?” Beatrice asked.

“She is lethal with a stick.” Ava replied seriously.

The bruises still hadn’t healed. 

There was a brief look of concern on Beatrice’s face as she shifted into a defensive stance.

“We’ll start slow, okay?” She said. “Throw some punches so I can get a feel for what we need to focus on.”   
  
Ava took a deep breath and raised her fists. “You’re not going to go too easy on me, right?”   
  
“No. But I promise that if I hurt you anywhere i’ll kiss it better later.”

Ava couldn’t help but grin. “You’re getting better with flirting.”   
  
“Thank you. Now show me what you can do.”

\--

Lilith had to wince when Ava hit the ground face first, mud splattering everywhere. 

Beyond the occasional drizzle throughout the day, they had mostly been spared by the rain, only for it to come down now with a vengeance. 

From the moment they had started, she had been able tell that Ava was almost at her limit. 

She was phasing through the trees without issue, but the moment they tried to use the halo to increase her speed everything had begun to unravel. 

Ava was exhausted, no doubt aching, soaking wet and getting frustrated at herself. 

Beatrice had been right, as always. 

Beatrice was also not going to like that they had practically driven Ava into the ground. 

Ava cursed under her breath as she got to her feet, the halo flickered out of pure frustration as she wiped mud from her face. 

"I think we should stop." Lilith said, she made a point of looking to the sky. "This isn't ideal for training." 

Ava looked as though she was about to protest, only to snap her mouth shut at the last second and look away. 

"Come on, before we get sick."

Ava snorted. "Pretty sure you and I are immune from things like the common cold now." 

"Let's not find out shall we?" 

\--

"How long has she been up there?" Camila asked quietly. 

"Fifteen minutes." Beatrice replied absentmindedly. 

The four of them had gathered at the foot of the stairs, all looking up as the sound of the shower running filled the house. 

"Do you think she's fallen asleep?" Lilith asked. "Ava strikes me as the type to fall asleep standing up." 

Beatrice couldn't quite argue with that. 

"You should probably go check on her." Mary said. 

"I'm not going to invade her privacy like that." Beatrice replied. 

She was not ready to be met with a naked Ava. 

"What if she fell asleep and she's drowning though?" Camila asked. 

"Okay Final Destination, calm down." Mary sighed. 

"We really do need to rethink our training plan." Beatrice said. "Lilith had to practically drag her back to the house." 

"Agreed, it's too much. She can't give her best if we exhaust her before lunchtime." Lilith added. 

The shower stopped and they all let out a quiet sigh of relief. 

"So we only focus on a couple things a day." Mary nodded. "That's fine." 

They fell silent as doors opened and closed and quietly moved back into the living room. 

"So we're definitely having a relaxed evening in?" Camila asked. 

"Definitely. I'll cook tonight." Mary said. "You guys are free to help but I think you might be needed for some comforting." 

She punctuated her statement by pointing at Beatrice. 

Truthfully, Beatrice had been planning on doing as such regardless. 

"I'll help with dinner." Lilith said. "Cam, Bea and Ava can have the TV for a while." 

"Nice." Camila grinned, already moving to fling herself onto the loveseat. 

Now they could hear the soft footfalls from upstairs and Mary gave her a pat on the shoulder. 

"We'll call you when dinner is ready." 

Beatrice offered a small nod and a smile and moved to take a seat on the sofa in time to hear Ava coming down the stairs. 

Ava smiled as their eyes met, but even then, gloominess clung to her features. 

"Hi." Beatrice greeted. 

"Hey." Ava replied. 

She omitted the extra few steps to walk around the sofa and instead chose to let her weight tip her over, bouncing face first into the cushions with a grunt. 

"Oh Ava…" Beatrice reached out to brush her fingers through Ava's hair. "Are you tired?" 

"That's one way to put it." Ava mumbled. 

Camila shot a brief smile in their direction before she turned her attention fully to the TV. 

Beatrice patted her thighs. "Come on then." 

Ava didn't need to be told twice, she shuffled forward a few inches until her head was resting in Beatrice's lap, even going as far as to wrap her arms around Beatrice's waist as she made herself comfortable. 

She was asleep within a few minutes. 

Beatrice blinked down at Ava for a few moments before her hand found its way into Ava's hair once more. 

Camila cast an amused look in their direction. "We really wore her out huh?" 

"I think that's an understatement." Beatrice agreed. 

They stayed like that for a long time, when it came to eating it took a lot of coaxing to even bring Ava out of her sleep for long enough to eat dinner before she promptly fell asleep in Beatrice’s lap once more. 

When it came time for everyone to retreat to bed, Beatrice found herself hesitating. 

She didn't particularly want to wake Ava, but at the same time, she wanted Ava to be in bed where she'd be much more comfortable. 

That was the deciding factor in gently shaking Ava awake. 

"Ava." 

Ava let out a half whine in protest. "No." 

"You need to go to bed." 

Ava sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes as she focused on Beatrice. 

She looked so tired, and still strangely gloomy. 

Beatrice didn't like it. 

"What's wrong?" She asked. 

"Can I sleep down here instead?" Ava replied quietly, almost like she was scared to ask. "I'll take the other sofa. I'll even take the floor, please." 

The request was so gentle it completely threw Beatrice for a moment. 

"Ava…" She reached for Ava's hand. "Why? What's wrong with the bed?" 

"Nothing." Ava sighed. "I just… You're not there. I couldn't sleep last night and I think it's because I wasn't near you." 

It was a small comfort to Beatrice to know that it hadn't just been her. 

"I felt the same. I didn't want to assume that you were feeling the same." 

Ava yawned into her hand. "With Lilith kidnapping me for that run this morning it threw me off." 

Beatrice really didn't mind Ava sleeping in the living room with her, but it still didn't seem like the most comfortable option. 

"I might… Have another suggestion." Beatrice began, a little apprehensively. 

Ava looked at her curiously. 

"What?"

"What if I came with you?" 

Ava blinked at her. "You mean, to my room?" 

"Yes." 

She watched Ava take a deep breath as she turned the words over in her mind. 

"In my bed?" 

"Yes, Ava." 

"Are you sure?" Ava asked. "Would you be comfortable?" 

Beatrice turned Ava's hand over to trace a pattern into her palm as she considered this. 

"I think I'm ready to try." Beatrice replied. "We're there, right?" 

Her body felt somewhat in turmoil, this was different from all of the kisses she had shared with Ava, in all of those situations there was still control. 

To sleep beside each other was a different thing entirely. 

This was a new level of vulnerability that was different from the nights where they were all crowded together in the back of the van or when her and Ava slept downstairs back at the cottage.

But it wasn't really new, was it? 

They'd fallen asleep near each other, that one night. Their bodies always gravitated towards each other. 

It was just the idea of there being an actual bed involved that was throwing her thoughts into flux. 

"I think we are." Ava agreed. "We're good, hell-" 

"Ava." 

"Heck, we're better than good. I think we can share a bed, so long as you promise to tell me if you're uncomfortable in any way?" 

Always making sure they're on the same page. It was hard not to fall a little harder for Ava with each day that passes. 

"I promise, and you?" 

Ava grinned. "I promise. I also promise to keep my hands to myself unless you say otherwise." 

Beatrice hummed through her smile and got up from the sofa, tugging on Ava's hand so that she followed. 

She already knew that she didn't necessarily want Ava to do that. The unspoken lines they had drawn remained in place and would until they finally sat down and talked about it.

Until Beatrice confronted the subject that neither of them had dared to broach. 

Her vows. 

But for tonight, at least, Beatrice could put those thoughts aside. 

Instead, she could focus on Ava slipping past her, the hold on each other's hands never faltering as she led them up the stairs and down the hallway to her room. 

"Do you have a side preference?" Ava asked around a yawn. 

Neither bothered with the light, the moon proved a strong enough source. 

"Not particularly, you?" 

"You already know I can and will sleep anywhere." 

Beatrice cast a fond smile towards Ava and followed her towards the bed, moving around as Ava dropped down onto it. 

Once they settled beneath the covers, they both spent a long time on their backs, not quite close enough to touch. 

She half expected for Ava to be asleep as soon as they settled down, but judging from the sound of her breathing, Ava was just as awake as she was. 

Beatrice turned her head to the side and spent a moment admiring the profile of Ava - of her  _ girlfriend.  _

It was still such an unfamiliar term, a term Beatrice never thought she would have the delight in calling someone. 

And oh, what a delight it was. 

Ava must have sensed Beatrice's eyes on her and rolled her head to the side, eyes bright with moonlight. Her smile was lopsided and sleepy as she met Beatrice's admiring gaze. 

"Bea?" 

Beatrice reached out to brush her fingers along Ava's cheek. 

"You're so beautiful." 

Ava shifted onto her side, her smile only growing brighter as she managed to brush her lips against Beatrice's hand before she could withdraw it. 

She moved onto her side too, though her hands itched for more. 

Ava seemed to pick up on this, Beatrice still didn't understand how, exactly, Ava could look at her and see all of the desires that lingered under the surface and had little hesitation about prompting Beatrice into voicing them.

"Tell me what you want." Ava said quietly. 

"I want to hold you." Beatrice replied honestly. 

"You can. I'm here." Ava said. "Just think of it like you're giving me a hug." 

Ava’s words helped will Beatrice's limbs into moving, closing the small space between them and curling her arms around Ava's body. She didn't need to pull Ava closer, Ava took care of that herself.

Ava fit against her as though she had done it a thousand times before, her own arms circling Beatrice's body and her head finding its home against her chest. 

The warmth and comfort that fell over Beatrice was almost instantaneous, any tension she had felt in the moments leading up to this had melted away until all that was left was the feeling of having someone so important to her in her arms. 

Beatrice knew that one of her arms would fall asleep in this position but had no desire to move. She adjusted her head until her chin was resting in Ava's hair. 

"You okay?" Ava asked. 

Beatrice settled for tracing a soft pattern against Ava's back. 

"I'm okay." Beatrice whispered. "I'm okay." 

She didn't know exactly how soon after that they both fell asleep, only that neither of them moved. 

\--

Lilith slipped from the bed quietly so as to not disturb Camila on the other side of the room and got changed into her training gear. 

She headed directly for Ava's room. Lilith was more than aware that there was no way that Ava was willingly going to get out of bed each morning for their runs and so it now fell to her to drag their halo bearer out of consciousness. 

Lilith gave the door a cursory knock before pushing it open, flicking on the light as she stepped into the room. 

"Come on Ava, time to get…" 

The rest of the sentence died on her lips as Lilith was met with a bleary eyed Ava and Beatrice sitting up and staring back at her. 

She was just thankful that they were both clothed. If Lilith could avoid seeing her friends naked she could die happy. 

Despite herself, Lilith found herself sighing. 

"You have fifteen minutes." 

She flicked the lights off and closed the door before making her way downstairs. 

When her and Camila had opted to share a room, she knew Camila had felt a little guilty about not disclosing to Ava and Beatrice that the room in question actually had two twin beds.

Mary has pointed out that the safety of having two beds would have either meant that they wouldn't progress to the point of sharing a space, or that they would end up sharing one of them which would leave a bed wasted. 

A small admission of fact had been the smart choice, but Lilith was sure that none of them expected the pair to progress so quickly. 

She might actually have to take Mary up on her bets at this rate. 

\--

Ava fell back to the pillows with a groan. 

Getting up early sucked for a whole list of reasons, but now she had a brand new one. 

Namely the fact that she has Beatrice in bed with her. 

Beatrice who held her all night. 

Beatrice who always looked beautiful but there was something extra heartwarming about seeing her right now, hair messy, eyes still heavy with sleep and looking down at Ava with amusement. 

"You should probably get up." 

Ava groaned again as she closed her eyes. "I know." 

She felt movement and the faint sensation of hair tickling her skin and lips brushing carefully against her own. 

When Beatrice kissed her like this it felt like a whispered secret. 

Each one felt like she was sharing a part of herself with Ava, handing it to her and asking for Ava to treat it with care. 

These kisses said all of the things they had yet to say themselves. 

Ava reached up to cradle Beatrice's cheek as she melted into the kiss until Beatrice eventually pulled away. 

"Come on, get up." Beatrice said again. 

"Okay, okay, I'm getting up." Ava replied, though she caught Beatrice's wrist when she saw her throw the covers off of herself. "What are you doing?" 

Beatrice raised an eyebrow. "Getting up?" 

"You don't have to, stay for a bit." 

To try and encourage Beatrice she tugged on her wrist and was surprised by how pilant Beatrice was, how willingly she fell back against the pillows. 

"Doesn't seem worth it if you've got to get up." Beatrice pointed out. 

Ava mimicked the position that Beatrice had taken earlier and carefully leant over to kiss her.

"Go back to sleep." Ava whispered, drawing back and reaching to stroke the hair from Beatrice's face. "I'll try to get back before you get up." 

Beatrice smiled sleepily and for a moment Ava just had to admire her. 

"Go." Beatrice urged gently. 

With great reluctance, she did. 

\--

Mary sat on the back step as she watched Lilith and Ava sparring. 

Lilith hadn't let the claws out but it felt like she was teleporting frequently to throw Ava off, who in return would phase through as many attacks as possible. 

Mary took a drag of her cigarette as Lilith appeared behind Ava, who barely managed to jump out of the way before Lilith's punch could land. 

"Come on Ava, use the halo. Use your speed." 

"I can't!" 

"Yes you can!" 

"I don't know how!" 

Lilith teleported again, appearing at Ava's side and landing a solid kick that had Ava stumbling to the ground. 

Mary heard footsteps behind her and a few moments later, Beatrice sat down beside her, casting a frown at the scene in front of them. 

"You can, Ava." Lilith urged again. "Channel the halo and move." 

Mary could see the halo beginning to brighten. 

"If Lilith keeps pushing her like this, then Ava is going to implode." Beatrice said. 

"Pretty sure that's the goal." Mary replied. "Controlling the halo means knowing Ava's limits." 

She glanced at her friend to see a faintly disapproving look on her face. 

"You'd do it differently?" Mary asked. 

Beatrice was quiet as she watched Ava take another hit. Eventually, she sighed. 

"Ava needs to be pushed, but to make her feel powerless is like to back her into a corner. It makes her frustrated." Beatrice said, she gestured to Ava. "See? Her form is getting sloppy, leaving herself open to attacks." 

On point, Ava threw a punch only to have Lilith teleport behind her and land a kick at the back of her leg, sending her back down to the ground. 

"Maybe I'm being too soft." Beatrice wondered aloud. "I don't like seeing her hurting." 

"I don't think it's soft." Mary replied. "You care and without a doubt you know her better than any of us." 

Beatrice's expression shifted slightly and Mary had come to realise that it was the one she made whenever she slipped into her own thoughts. 

"Plus she actually listens to you and does what you say with very little protest." Mary added. 

That got a genuine smile out of Beatrice. 

"Sometimes I forget that we don't actually know each other all that well. That Ava?" Beatrice tilted her head in the direction of the girl in question. "I know better than I know myself. But the Ava from before? She's still a mystery, I see the traces and I suppose she feels the same when she looks at me." 

It was so unfamiliar to have Beatrice sat beside her, freely offering her thoughts. 

Such was the effect of Ava. Mary wondered if Ava understood the effect she truly had. 

Beatrice was quiet for a minute as she thought, she seemed to come to some kind of conclusion herself as she smiled once more. 

"I suppose that extends to all of us though, doesn't it?" Beatrice asked. "We know each other now, but only fragments of the things that brought us together." 

"I guess it never really mattered to us before." Mary said. "It doesn't matter who we were before, just who we are now."

"And who we want to be." 

"Exactly." 

"We should change that. I think. We're sisters, we should know where we came from." 

"Sounds like a lot of work." 

"It does." 

"But I'm not opposed to it." Mary said. "We have time." 

Beatrice nodded, more sure of herself. "We do." 

Silence fell around them as they watched Ava get slammed into the ground again, the halo was getting brighter and Mary was left wondering how long it would be before she imploded and sent Lilith reeling. 

"Ava isn't your sister though, right?" Mary asked, making sure to let as much amusement slip into her voice as she could. "Otherwise I may have to stage an intervention." 

Beatrice laughed, shaking her head as she dropped her gaze to the ground. "No. She most certainly isn't." 

"Good. Now, I never thought I'd say this, but you should probably go and calm your girlfriend down before Lilith gets thrown across the map." 

Beatrice merely looked amused as she got to her feet and made her way towards the pair. 

Mary watched as Lilith saw her approach and relaxed her stance causing Ava to look utterly confused until she too saw Beatrice get closer. 

It was intriguing, how all it seemed to take was a hand on Ava's back to have the halo dimming, fading into a steady pulse that Mary strongly suspected fell in time with Ava's breathing. 

There was so much they still didn't understand about the halo, but they knew emotions always played a huge part. 

And when it came to Ava, the girl who wore her heart on her sleeve, it only served to be a beacon to all of the feelings that were already so clear on her face. 

\--

"I think we're approaching the halo situation wrong." Lilith said suddenly. 

Everybody looked up from their respective meals to focus on Lilith, Ava belatedly realised that she was the last to do so. 

"How so?" Beatrice asked. 

As Ava looked to each of her friends, she noticed that only Camila's expression reflected the confusion that she felt. 

Which honestly only added to Ava's confusion. 

Why did Beatrice and Mary both look like they knew what Lilith was talking about? 

Lilith turned her attention to Ava. "When we were sparring and I was trying to get you to use it to move, how did you feel?" 

Ava looked down at her food and stabbed at a piece of broccoli with a bit more force than the poor vegetable deserved. 

"Frustrated." 

"At me?" 

"No, well… No more than usual." She tried for a grin and was met with Lilith rolling her eyes. "Myself. I was frustrated at myself." 

"Why?" 

What was dinner without a bit of emotional introspection, apparently. 

"Because I can't make it work how I want, when I want. The phasing is fine, I've got that nailed but this?" She shook her head. "I've done the speed and… And strength before. Hell, I even levitated. But that was the halo taking control. Not me." 

Sister Frances' face flashed through her mind. 

The feeling of her neck snapping in her hands. 

Ava saw Beatrice shoot her a concerned look. 

She felt sick. 

It must have been more than noticeable, as Ava was faintly aware of Beatrice's hand slip into hers beneath the table. A gentle squeeze, a question in itself. 

Ava forced herself to return it, but knew it must have felt half-hearted. 

Nobody corrected her on her language. 

"And what was in common with those things?" Lilith asked. 

Her tone was alarmingly gentle, like it had been back at the Loch. 

In another circumstance, Ava would have teased her for the apparent soft spot Lilith was developing for her. 

Ava drew back to each instant and only one emotion resonated clearly. 

"Fear… Fear and anger." 

"The halo protects you when you're afraid." Camila spoke up for the first time, she still looked a little bit like she was playing mental catchup with the conversation, but her logic was sound. 

Ava wasn't sure she'd consider what she did to Sister Frances an act of fear. 

She forced the thoughts away. To focus on the conversation around her. 

For a moment the table was silent. 

"Not just Ava." Mary said. "Your room, when we got the journal. Crimson?" 

From the corner of her eye, Ava saw Beatrice straighten, shooting another brief look towards Ava. 

That day felt like an eternity ago, but Ava could still remember the bone chilling terror that had taken over when she saw Crimson point the gun at Beatrice. 

She remembered not thinking, just letting her feet carry her forward, not knowing what she was supposed to do. 

Just that she had to do something, even if it meant putting herself in front of the blast. 

Looking back she knew she wouldn't have made it. Had the halo not flared, Beatrice would have died. 

That realisation sent a chill down Ava's spine. 

"The halo protected someone that you care about. Don't forget that it was also the first time you drained it." 

How could she forget that part. 

Ava watched as Mary and Lilith shared another look, a whole conversation seemed to take place in the silence between them. 

Eventually, Lilith turned back to Ava. 

"When you controlled your phasing, what did you feel?" 

"At first, fear, as usual." 

"And then?" Lilith prompted. "What changed it?" 

Ava looked to Beatrice, who turned to meet her gaze. She could see the thoughts racing behind those eyes. 

"A conversation. A promise." Ava brought Beatrice's hand into her lap and lay it palm up so that she could trace patterns into the skin. "I was still scared but… I felt safe and..." 

"Unburdened?" Beatrice offered in a quiet voice. 

"Free." Ava continued. 

She saw Camila smile behind her glass. 

"Not quite myself, but for a moment, it was like I was on the right path." 

She'd quite literally fallen into Beatrice's arms that day. The metaphors didn't get much more literal than that. 

"Fear isn't the answer." Lilith said. "Fear makes you reckless, as does your frustration. You need to tap into those feelings again and channel them when we train. That's the only way we're going to see progress."

Beatrice had slipped back into her thoughts, food forgotten as she absorbed the information they had unearthed. 

"Get zen. Get good." Ava concluded, though her tone lacked any of its usual humour, she used her fork to salute Lilith. "You got it." 

\--

Beatrice watched Ava carefully throughout the rest of dinner and the hour afterwards. 

Something had shifted, something important. 

She had seen the shift in Ava the moment she had mentioned her other abilities. 

Ava looked _ haunted.  _

It was worrying. 

Beatrice had already had an idea of what she wanted to do with Ava to try and help her, it had been forming in the back of her mind since her conversation with Mary, but now it became a much more important endeavour. 

She found Mary in the kitchen. 

"Are the flashlights with the rest of the gear?" 

Mary hummed, distractedly. "Bags are in the cupboard under the stairs, why?" 

"I'm taking Ava for a walk." 

Mary raised an eyebrow but didn't comment, Beatrice didn't give her a chance to, she was heading through to the living room as soon as she had her answer. 

Ava was on the sofa, looking at the TV but not really paying any attention to it, Camila and Lilith were on the other sofa, arguing quietly about what they should watch. 

"Ava?" 

Ava looked up and Beatrice tilted her head, indicating for her to follow. 

Ava joined her as Beatrice dug out two flashlights. 

"What's up?" 

"Put your jacket on." 

"I- Okay?" 

Beatrice got to her feet and offered a reassuring smile. "Up for a walk?" 

"Sure." 

Together they put their jackets on and slipped into the night. 

Even with the moon and stars above, it was so dark that they both clicked the lights on. 

"Show me the way to the Loch?" Beatrice suggested. She held her hand out and smiled when Ava took it, tugging gently for her to follow. 

Once they were in the cover of the trees, Beatrice spoke up. 

"Do you want to talk about it?" 

"I don't know." Ava admitted. "Yes? But… Can it wait until we get there?" 

Ava had shown her so much patience, it was more than easy to return the favour. 

"Of course. You know you don't have to say anything that you're not ready for, you know?" 

Ava sighed. "I know. I just need to organise it all, you know?" 

"I do." 

She pulled Ava closer, the warmth at her side a steady reassurance. 

They walked in silence until the trees cleared once more. 

They both stopped as they took in the sight before them. 

The sky was clear, and each star seemed to reflect in the water like scattered diamonds. 

It was beautiful. 

"Bea?" 

"Yes?" 

"Have you ever killed somebody?" 

Beatrice was expecting a lot of possibilities, but this certainly wasn't one of them. 

"I have." 

Ava dropped her hand and sighed again, she clicked off the flashlight and shoved it into her pocket. 

"The first time you did it, how did you feel?" 

Ava wasn't looking at her. 

"Empty, it took a lot to process. To come to terms with why it happened." 

"Why did it happen?" 

"It was self defence. We were being attacked." 

Ava took her answer with a small nod and took a few steps forward towards the Loch. 

"How much do you know about what happened between me, Lilith and Mary? Specifically when they found me at St Michael's."

Beatrice felt unsettled by where this was going. 

"Not much." She admitted. "Just that Mary intervened and you ran." 

"You already know that I didn't kill myself, I told you what I remembered." 

"You did." 

Ava continued to move forward and Beatrice followed. 

"Sister Frances, she killed me. She overdosed me. She did it to a lot of kids, it turns out." Ava dipped her head to the ground. "She tried to do it to Diego." 

Diego, the child that was Ava's only friend for so long. 

"I stopped her. I pinned her to the wall… I was so angry, Bea." 

"Ava…"

"Her neck… I snapped it. I killed her." 

The admission was barely a whisper on the wind, wrought with so much pain that Beatrice felt her heart ache. 

She watched Ava raise a hand to her face and knew instantly that she was wiping at tears. 

"I can say I was protecting him but-" 

"Ava." Beatrice interrupted, moving towards her and reaching out to rest her hand against Ava's back. "You  _ were _ protecting him. You were protecting all of the other children there."

"I didn't have to kill her." 

"No." Beatrice agreed. To lie would be unfair to Ava. "But in doing so you saved countless others." 

"One life to save many." Ava mumbled. "That… Doesn't really make me feel better." 

"It won't." Beatrice replied. "But it's your starting point. What happened doesn't make you a bad person, was it an act of anger? Yes, but you can't ignore the good in that act."

Ava turned to her, tears falling freely. She wiped at them again with the sleeve of her jacket. 

"How can you be so calm about this?" 

"Because I've taken lives before. Everybody at that house has, under different circumstances. To judge you for your action would be wrong." 

Beatrice reached up to brush her thumbs under Ava's eyes, taking her time with each movement as Ava stared imploringly at her. 

"And because it's  _ you _ , Ava." Beatrice continued. "...it's you." 

Ava sniffed again and in that instant, fell against Beatrice. 

It wasn't unfamiliar from the first time this had happened, all that time ago in Mother Superion's office. 

The only difference now was that Beatrice didn't hesitate to curl her arms around Ava, to slip a hand into her hair and hold her face in the space between her neck and shoulder where Ava fit so well. 

Beatrice lost track of time, instead focusing on Ava and Ava alone, holding her close as Ava cried. 

"Why did you bring me out here?" Ava asked quietly. 

"You need a different approach to learning to control the halo, that was my intention." 

Ava sniffed, pulling back to wipe the last of her tears away. "We can still do that." 

"We already are." Beatrice replied, reaching to cradle Ava's face in her hands. "Personal pain, remember? We'll work through this, together. And we'll take these walks every night, every hour if that's what it takes, okay?" 

Ava nodded, glumly. "Okay." 

"The first step is always the hardest. But I'm with you." 

Ava nodded again and sighed, glancing back towards the Loch. "This wasn't how I imagined bringing you here." 

"I know. But we'll keep coming back. It's beauty isn't going anywhere." 

Ava took a deep breath and as she exhaled, it seemed like some of the weight lifted from her shoulders. 

"Do you want to head back?" Beatrice asked. "It's still early, but we can go to bed, if you want me there with you?" 

"I couldn't imagine you being anywhere else." Ava admitted. "I need you, Bea." 

Beatrice stepped forward to brush the lightest kiss against Ava's forehead. 

"I need you too." 

Their admissions felt like another step closer to the words they both felt in their souls.

Beatrice knew that she would carry as much of the weight that Ava allowed, she knew Ava would (and has) done the same for her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, you can find me [here](https://yashastrongarms.tumblr.com/)  
> Also i'm on [twitter!](https://twitter.com/RogueThirteen94)
> 
> Hope everyone is doing well, stay safe, i love you all


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FEELIN PRODUCTIVE also peep the extra chapter LOL this is out of control

The thing about confronting or opening up about your demons is that fallout often follows in its wake. 

Beatrice has become more than familiar with such occurrences over the years, nights waking up to tear stained pillows haunted by dreams she could scarcely remember but had always left her aching. 

So it wasn't all that much of a surprise when she was pulled from the edges of her sleep to the sensation of Ava, tossing and turning in her sleep, clearly in the midst of a nightmare containing her own personal demons. 

Beatrice sat up carefully, placing a hand on Ava's shoulder. 

"Ava." She called gently. 

She didn't dare shake her. 

The halo was flickering, as always a beacon to Ava's emotions. 

In this case, distress. 

Beatrice shifted her hand to Ava’s face, repeating her name steadily until eventually Ava stirred, eyes snapping open, a look of sheer panic in her expression until she registered Beatrice above her.

“Beatrice.” Ava gasped quietly, her own hand coming up to cover Beatrice’s.

“I’m here.” Beatrice replied. “I’m here, you’re okay. You’re safe, you’re with me.”  
  
Ava’s body seemed to tremble as she curled into Beatrice, who in turn made sure to hold her close, whispering reassurances until eventually, she felt the tremors subside.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Beatrice asked.  
  
“No.”  
  
Beatrice rubbed Ava’s back. “That’s okay. What can I do?”  
  
“I don’t know.”  
  
Beatrice had an idea.

“Do you want to be distracted?”  
  
Ava seemed to consider this for a moment before pulling away from Beatrice and regarding her curiously.

“Distract how?”  
  
Beatrice reached out and gently took Ava’s chin between her fingers.

Ava connected the dots quickly.

“Can I kiss you?”  
  
Ava’s eyes were wide as she nodded.

Beatrice leant in slowly, the first brush of lips was tentative, cautious, before she kissed Ava again. Firmer and more sure of herself.

When she broke the kiss, she didn’t move away.

“More?” She asked.

Ava’s answer was to kiss her with an intensity and desperation neither had experienced until that point.

There was enough urgency in the kiss that when they broke apart, it was Beatrice who was left breathless.

Ava’s eyes seemed clearer than they had a few minutes ago, a small victory in itself.

“Is it working?” Beatrice asked.

Ava nodded.  
  
Beatrice pushed the hair from Ava’s face, let her touch linger against the curve of her jaw.

“Tell me what you need, Ava. Tell me how I can help.”  
  
Ava seemed to struggle to find the words for a moment, but when she did, they were clear and certain.

“Just… More of this? Please? You make me feel grounded.”  
  
Beatrice nodded as she slipped her hand around to cradle the back of Ava’s head. If this was what Ava needed then she was more than happy to provide.

“Can you lie down for me?” Beatrice asked quietly.

With Beatrice’s hands to guide her, Ava shifted and settled back down against the pillows. Beatrice followed suit, shifting to lie beside her.

There wasn’t an inch between them, and with her hand still behind Ava’s head, it was easy to turn her towards her.

“Still okay?” Beatrice asked. She reached up with her free hand and pressed her thumb to Ava’s bottom lip, stroking it carefully.

“Still okay.” Ava replied.

Beatrice replaced her thumb with her lips, spending a few moments paying close attention to Ava’s lip before tentatively brushing her tongue against it.

Ava’s breath shook as she opened her mouth, reaching blindly for Beatrice’s hand until she could lace their fingers together and hold Beatrice’s hand close to her chest.

The kisses were slow but weren't lacking in intensity and as her tongue slid against Ava’s, she felt that steadily familiar heat coiling in her stomach.

Beatrice pushed the feelings aside.

This wasn’t about her needs right now. 

This was about helping Ava, and making sure Ava felt grounded.

“Ava?” Beatrice breathed between kisses. “How are you feeling?”  
  
“Better.” Ava replied, tilting her head to chase Beatrice’s lips. “Like me again.”

“Do you want more of this?”  
  
Ava kissed her again, a gentle press of lips. “I’ve taken enough already.”  
  
“It’s yours to take.” Beatrice replied.

Ava’s smile was small, but genuine as she shifted closer to wrap her arms around Beatrice’s waist. “This is enough.”  
  
“Are you sure?”  
  
Ava hummed. “I might not fall asleep for a while, but I feel safe now.”  
  
Beatrice’s hand found Ava’s back, felt the warmth of the halo, its steady pulse a confirmation to the calm that had begun to settle.

“You’ll always be safe with me.”  
  
“I know.” Ava pressed a kiss to Beatrice’s neck. “I hope you feel the same.”  
  
“You know I do.”  
  
“You can go back to sleep if you want.”  
  
“No, I'm with you, Ava.”

And she was, Beatrice made sure of it, only letting herself fall asleep when Ava went limp in her arms and didn’t stir again.

\--

When Ava woke up, it was to silence and a warm presence beneath her. 

She was half on top of Beatrice, stretched out on top of her. 

For a moment Ava just observed the girl, peaceful and fast asleep, one hand still curled loosely into her shirt. 

Beatrice had given her so much last night. 

An ear to listen to her messy thoughts. A soothing voice full of understanding and reassurance. 

A touch that helped bring her back to herself and kisses that held so many feelings, that contained so much passion that Ava was certain that it would bring her back from the dead. 

They definitely brought her back last night, grounded her in a way that she knew she wouldn't be able to put into words. 

Ava brushed her fingers gently across Beatrice's cheek before she eased out of her touch. 

She got changed quickly and headed towards the door, pulling it open. 

Lilith stood just on the other side, hand hovering as though she had been about to knock. 

"Oh, this is a surprise." 

Ava hushed her and stepped out, closing the door behind her. 

"Bea's still asleep." 

"I gathered." Lilith studied her for a moment. "You look like crap." 

"Yeah well, bad night. Turns out that dealing with issues isn't easy." 

Lilith raised an eyebrow and looked as though she was about to ask, but thought better of it. 

"We heading out or what?" Ava asked instead. 

Lilith nodded. "Let's go." 

Together they slipped out of the house and began their run. 

Ava kept pace with Lilith, focusing on each footfall, each intake and exhale of her breath. 

Neither spoke until they reached the water. 

Ava closed her eyes and rested her hands on her knees for a moment, letting her breathing even out. The ache in her muscles didn't feel as bad as it had during their last few runs.

"You seem different today. Focused." 

Ava straightened up and sighed. "I need the distraction." 

"Distraction from what?" 

"I'm trying to process something." 

"Something traumatic?" 

Ava nodded. 

"I won't press for details. That's for you to share if and when you're ready." Lilith came to a stop beside her and folded her arms over her chest, looking out to the water. "But talking is important. I'm guessing Beatrice is aware?" 

"Yeah." 

"Good, keep talking to her, personal reflection is key but without an outside presence the results can get… Skewed. You were too close to the event to see the big picture." 

How many lives had Ava saved because of what she did? 

"A routine helps, so it's fitting that this has come about while you're in training." Lilith continued. "Most importantly, remind yourself that you are not alone."

Ava swallowed as she looked away. "You know you might actually make me cry. You'd have to hug me, it'll be awkward." 

"I'm sure I could survive should the need arise." 

"I'm going to hold you to that, you know." Ava replied. 

Lilith sighed. "Somehow, I don't doubt that in the slightest." 

Ava turned to face the path once more. "You ready to head back?" 

"Are you?" 

"As I'll ever be." 

\--

"Is Ava okay?" 

Beatrice looked up from her spot on the steps as Mary sat beside her. 

Ava and Camila were sparring, with sticks again much to everyone's mutual displeasure. 

She seemed happier at least, smiling whenever she followed Camila's enthusiastic instructions. 

But there had still been a shift that had not gone unnoticed by the others. 

"She's… Working through some pain." Beatrice replied. "I have faith that she will be fine as she processes it."

Mary accepted this without further questions. 

"And you?" 

"What about me?" 

"Have you worked through your pain? What you told us a few days ago, I know that's something that you've been keeping to yourself for years. I wanted to make sure you were okay." 

Beatrice looked over to Ava and watched her for a few moments as she considered Mary's words. 

"I think so. It's not something that I can accept all at once, everything that has happened between me and Ava has been steady. At a pace that we both feel comfortable with." 

"I'm happy to hear that, and I know things between you both are good but Bea, what I'm asking right now doesn't involve Ava." 

"It kind of does, in a way." 

"In a way." Mary agreed. "But your path with your sexuality isn't defined by your relationship. Ava accepts you, as do we all, but have you accepted yourself?" 

It was a good question, and while Beatrice sometimes found herself faltering on who she was, she couldn't deny that she was definitely on the right track. 

Her path to acceptance had started with Sister Melanie's journal. God's chosen. 

The halo had accepted her. 

And while the specifics of their sexualities were still unclear to Beatrice, the halo had also accepted Shannon and Ava. 

That stood for so much. 

It wasn't enough to rid her mind of the memories from her past, the words that her parents had spoken to her, the exile she had felt in Switzerland. 

But the light of the halo brightened the good parts. The moments like this where she felt nothing but acceptance from the family she had built for herself. 

"The Beatrice you're looking at now, yes. But the teenage Beatrice that lives in here?" Beatrice tapped her heart. "I don't think she's there yet." 

"When you've spent so long being told that who you are is wrong, it will take time for you to unpack that." 

"Did you ever struggle?" Beatrice asked. 

"Not particularly. Not with being gay." Mary replied. "We came from very different places, Bea."

Beatrice hummed thoughtfully. 

"Shannon did though. In a way not all that dissimilar than you. She knew who she was but for a long time she struggled to reconcile from what she had been taught in sermons when she was young." 

If there was one thing that she felt some regret about, it was that she never got the chance to have this conversation with Shannon. 

"That's the thing about the bible, Bea. You can pull quotes from any scripture and use it to justify your own prejudices." Mary tipped her head back to look at the sky, expression calm and thoughtful. "But God made each of us in his image, he made you this way. He'd want you to love who you for who you are." 

Beatrice turned her attention to the ground, feeling the threat of tears behind her eyes. 

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." 

"Matthew 7:12." Beatrice nodded.

"You give love so freely, you deserve to love yourself too." Mary replied. "I know you said that you joined the church to 'save your eternal soul' but your soul doesn't need to be saved, Beatrice. Your soul is beautiful. That's what I wanted you to know." 

She was aware of a tear hitting her pants and let out a shuddering breath. 

The feeling of Mary's hand on her back was steady and reassuring. 

"Thank you Mary." 

"Do you want me to get Ava?" 

"In a moment." Beatrice replied quietly. "I don't doubt that she'll notice herself." 

They stayed like that for several moments, Mary's hand still and solid against her back as Beatrice allowed a few tears to fall. 

A question popped into her mind, and Beatrice lifted her head. 

She watched Ava shoot a questioning look in her direction which Beatrice answered with a reassuring smile. 

"Mary?" 

"Hm?" 

"When you met me, did you know?" 

"That you were gay?" Mary grinned. "Immediately." 

"How?" 

"Got a vibe, babygirl."

"A… Vibe?" 

Mary laughed. "You've got some catching up to do, I'm going to have to teach you the joys of a gaydar." 

It wasn't what Beatrice had been expecting, but it was enough to draw a genuine laugh from her. 

Mary laughed too. 

This was love. 

\--

"I might have to go for a drive one of the days. Get some groceries and stuff." Mary suggested. 

Ava kicked her legs against the counter she was sat on, pulling the crusts off of her sandwich despite the way Mary rolled her eyes at her. 

"Can I come?" Ava asked. 

She loved hanging out around here, but she didn't want to risk cabin fever kicking in. 

"Sure." 

"And Bea?" 

Maybe they could have an impromptu official date. 

"If she likes." Mary replied. She lifted her head to narrow her eyes at Ava. "You're going to whisk her away and leave me hanging aren't you." 

She didn't even bother to frame it as a question. 

"Probably." Ava agreed. 

Mary sighed. "Group day out, I'm not being a chaperone to your hallmark romance." 

"That's fair." 

"You doing okay though?" 

Ava pulled at the crusts as she hummed. "Beatrice hasn't told you?" 

"Whatever you're going through is your business, you know Beatrice wouldn't say anything without your permission." 

"I will be. I think." Ava replied. "Bea's okay though right?" 

She'd seen a fleeting moment of Mary reaching out to comfort Beatrice while she had been sparring with Camila. 

Ava had been ready to drop everything right there to go over, but then she had seen them both laugh and had been reassured that Beatrice was okay. 

"She's good." Mary said. "You really… Care about her, don't you?" 

Ava was fairly certain that care hadn't been Mary's first choice of word. 

"Yeah." Ava nodded. "More than my heart knows how to deal with." 

For a moment, Mary seemed torn between rolling her eyes in exasperated fondness and smiling.

The latter won out, however and Ava found herself matching the smile. 

But there was some lingering sadness behind those eyes. 

When Mary looked at her and Beatrice, did she see herself and Shannon? 

\--

"So that's what you were talking about." Ava said as Beatrice finished talking. "She's right." 

"I know." Beatrice agreed. 

They had set out on their walk earlier than the night before, the ground was dry and Ava had promptly dropped down near the water. 

Beatrice sat beside her, and together they watched the water as they discussed their day. 

"Good." Ava nodded. "I'm glad." 

"There will still be moments." Beatrice said. Her eyes tracked the sun as it made its retreat behind the horizon, the sky was a scattered symphony of orange and reds. "Moments where I feel that who I am is wrong, that I don't deserve the… what we have." 

Ava's hand settled on the ground in the space between them, a silent invitation, one that Beatrice answered by reaching out to cover it with her own. 

"I know that they will be fleeting. The happiness that I feel… It isn't wrong. There could never be anything wrong about this." 

Ava's smile was bright as they both watched the sun set. 

"You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that. You know I'm proud of you, right?" 

Beatrice smiled too. "I do." 

"Good." 

"And I'm proud of you too." Beatrice said. "You seem better today." 

Ava stretched out onto her back. "Lilith said a routine would help, strangely, she was right. It's helped me. I've felt more focused." 

Ava closed her eyes for a few moments and Beatrice was content enough to watch until Ava organised the thoughts in her mind. 

When Ava opened her eyes, the sunset reflected in them, the mix of colours were like a fire in those glorious eyes. 

"You really helped me last night. With everything, but… I'm going to just throw it out there and say that the kissing in particular? Mind blowing comes to mind." 

There was enough of a lilt in Ava's voice to know that she was flirting. 

"I'm glad I could help." 

"Seriously Bea, if I'm ever in a life or death situation, forget CPR, just give me a kiss." 

Beatrice frowned. 

"Too dark?" 

"I'd really rather not think about a situation in which you're hurt, Ava." 

"That's fair." Ava nodded. "But yeah, everything you gave me, it helped." 

"It was yours to take." 

"You said that last night." Ava said quietly. 

"I meant it." 

"I know." Ava sat up. "But I don't want to take more than you're comfortable giving." 

"You'd never do that Ava, I don't want you to worry about that. We've never taken what the other wasn't willing to give." Beatrice shifted so that she could reach out to cup Ava's cheek. "We talk, we know each other and we know our boundaries." 

Ava turned her head to brush a kiss against the palm of Beatrice's hand. 

"And… As we move forward, we'll keep talking. We'll figure out the lines as we go." 

It was the most that she could offer. Beatrice didn't want to make promises about how far their relationship would go in terms of physical intimacy. 

Everything was still so new between them and Beatrice knew that she had a lot to work through before it was even a subject she could approach. 

That was a road to cross in the future. 

All that mattered was them now, in this moment. 

"Is that okay?" Beatrice asked. 

"More than." Ava replied. "As long as you're in my life, I'm happy. Everything else is just a bonus." 

"Like the making out?" Beatrice asked. 

Ava grinned. "I am a fan of the making out." 

"Do you want to make out?" 

Ava pretended to think about this for all of two seconds. 

"Make out with my beautiful girlfriend by the water during sunset?" Ava leaned in until their lips were almost touching, taking hold of Beatrice's cheek. "I'd be a fool to say no." 

\--

For Ava, the rest of the week seemed to follow a familiar pattern. 

Runs with Lilith in the morning. 

Alternating between the different areas of training throughout the day. 

Everybody settling down to eat dinner together before retreating to the living room to unwind for a bit. 

The conversations would vary between training strategies to mid but fond teasing of either Ava or Lilith, much to the latter's chagrin. 

And then Beatrice would take her on their evening/nightly walk down to the Loch, where they would talk about the thoughts in their head and take the time to reflect within each other's company before heading back to the house to either spend more time with the others or retreat to bed. 

It was always inevitable that they would end up wrapped around each other, Ava curled into the warmth of Beatrice and the steady sound of her heartbeat. 

The nightmares persisted, but Ava was learning how to cope with them a bit easier. 

Ava was learning not to necessarily absolve herself off the guilt that she felt, but to coincide with it. To let it exist as a part of her but not to overcome. 

The more that Ava thought about it though, the less she found herself hating Sister Frances. 

That was something that she hadn’t mentioned to Beatrice yet. 

Not until she could organise the thoughts to explain _why_ she felt how she did. 

"If you're going to wash the dishes, at least do it properly." Lilith sighed. 

"Right. Sorry." 

Ava returned to her task with renewed focus. 

"Where did you go just then?" 

"Reflecting on the last few days." Ava replied. "Do you think I'm doing okay?" 

She handed a plate to Lilith who studied it for a moment. 

"With your training or washing dishes? Because this really is not your forte." 

Ava laughed. "Sorry." 

"Your training is going well, you just need to focus more time on learning to control the halo. How is that going?" 

Ava faltered. 

Beatrice said that their time at the Loch was intended to help, but Ava had yet to really see how. She didn't dare say as much to Lilith, not willing to risk both her and Beatrice coming under fire for playing hookey. 

"Getting zen, slowly but surely." 

Lilith nodded. "Good. We'll start refocusing our efforts on activating your speed and strength." 

"Cool. Cool. Cool." 

"You saying that so many times gives me the distinct impression that it is not cool."

"That's ridiculous, everything is cool." 

“Say cool one more time, I dare you.”

\--

"Ava, trust in the process." Beatrice said gently as they exited the trees. 

The anxiety from Ava was mild, but definitely there as Ava had told her about the conversation with Lilith. 

Darkness had fallen, at this point the flashlights were little more than a formality. They knew this walk like the back of their hands. 

"I trust the process as much as I trust you." Ava said sincerely. "It's myself I don't trust as much." 

"Well my faith in you is just as deep as your trust in me. So I think it balances out." Beatrice said. 

As they got closer to the water, Beatrice eased the flashlight from Ava's hand, switched them both off and set them down on the ground. 

"It just feels like one of those situations when you have a presentation to give at school and the deadline is the next day and you just… Haven't started yet." Ava explained. "Not that I'd know that feeling."

"Likewise." 

Ava flashed her a quick grin. "I bet you were the type who did homework the day it was given to you, huh?" 

"Sort of." Beatrice admitted. "Though I did have the occasional time where I wasn't up to standard." 

Namely when things at home had started to unravel, and when her grades had suffered it had just been another mark for her parents justification for sending her away. 

"These walks have been helping you Ava, you know that. They have been chances for you to decompress, to reflect. The halo reacts to your emotions, to be able to understand the emotions you need to call on its power, you need to be able to trace your thoughts to the root of those feelings."

As Beatrice explained this, she took Ava's hand and led her closer to the water. 

The sky was clear again tonight, but it was also much colder. The air was crisp and harsh and every exhale left a trail of mist in its wake. 

"You needed to start the process of healing from what happened with Sister Frances, and I think you're doing that so well, Ava." 

Ava ducked her head to smile at the praise but when she looked up once more, that uncertainty was back. 

"Look." Beatrice gestured out to the water. "Tell me what you see." 

"Bea, it's dark." 

"Trust me?" 

Ava gave her a long look before turning her gaze outwards. 

"I see the moon, it's only a crescent but it's so bright. The stars, I know that space is endless but the thing I like about being here is that there's no light pollution. It feels like we can see into eternity." 

Beatrice smiled. "Good, what else?" 

Ava brought her gaze down. "I can see the ripples of water against the shore, the moon is helping. The scattered pebbles that have been washed up over time." 

"Now close your eyes." 

Beatrice waited until Ava did so, before she continued. 

"What do you feel?" 

"The cold against my skin, the wind between my fingertips and how it's brushing my hair against my skin." 

Beatrice moved to stand behind Ava and slipped her arms around her waist, gently pulling Ava against her body and rested her chin on Ava's left shoulder. 

"Keep going." She urged gently. 

"Your body against mine, your arms holding me steady. The air from your lungs against my ear." Ava paused for a moment. "Your heartbeat. It's… Faint, but I can feel it."

Beatrice knew that Ava was smiling as she spoke, and she couldn't help but smile too. 

"What do you smell?" 

"I don't know how to describe it… But you know how air can have a smell? It smells fresh. When the wind hits right I can smell the soil. I can smell the lavender of your soap." 

Ava took a breath, whether to steady herself or to inhale said scent, Beatrice wasn't sure. 

"And what do you hear?" 

"The lapping of the water against the shore, leaves rustling…" Ava paused as she listened again. "An owl in the distance." 

"Good, you're doing good, Ava." 

"The affection in your voice." Ava continued. "I didn't think trust had a sound, but… It does. It's in the way you talk to me." 

Beatrice was left breathless herself for a moment, and while she knew Ava heard her breath catch, she thankfully didn't add it to the list. 

She held Ava a little tighter. 

"Are your eyes still closed?" 

"Yeah." 

"Everything you've described to me. Picture them all now. Imagine yourself tracing the stars, the owls in the distance." Beatrice waited for a few moments. "Can you see it?" 

Ava let out a long breath as she nodded. "Yeah. Yeah I can." 

"How do you feel, right now, in this moment?" 

"Free." Ava replied quietly. "Free and… Oh." 

"Ava?" 

Ava turned in Beatrice's hold and looked at her with reverence. 

She understood. 

"Safe." Ava finished. "I feel safe." 

Beatrice watched the dots connect in Ava's mind and that look in her eyes only grew stronger. 

"That's why you've been doing this." Ava said. "You turned this into a safe space for me." 

"A singular moment where all of your senses are in play." Beatrice said. "A moment that belongs only to us. When you use the halo, remember this moment with me and how it makes you feel." 

Ava was looking at her like Beatrice had given her the stars themselves. 

In a way, Beatrice supposed she had, even if only in the form of a memory. 

"There will be other moments in the future as this one fades that you can draw on, but this felt like a good place to start." 

Ava was cradling Beatrice's face in her hands before she could even finish talking. 

"No." Ava whispered. "I'll never forget this moment or the way I feel right now. This is a part of us now." 

When Ava kissed her, it felt like the stars shone brighter. So bright Beatrice had to close her eyes so as to not be blinded by the intensity. 

As Beatrice opened her eyes, she realised that it hadn't been the stars at all, but rather, the halo. 

Its light rivalled the moon. Calling out to the stars as if to say _'look at us. The beauty you hold doesn't even compare.'_

The halo had always been an indicator to Ava's emotions, but Beatrice didn't need it. 

Ava's eyes spoke so much louder. 

"Ava…" She breathed. 

"I know." Ava replied quietly. Leaning in to kiss her again, much softer. "I can feel it." 

Was Ava talking about the halo or the feelings burning between them? 

The way Ava kissed her told Beatrice it had been the latter. 

\--

"I've been so excited to finally try this!" Ava grinned. 

Camila's grin matched her enthusiasm as she taped crudely drawn targets to the trees. 

It had taken so long for Ava to convince them to let her try the crossbow, she hadn't understood why she had been met with so much apprehension. 

In the end, Mary had been the one to relent, pointing out that they had let her near the guns, how much more damage could she do with a crossbow? 

Admittedly Ava was terrible with a gun, but she'd only walked away with a small injury to her hand from holding it wrong as she fired. 

Camila had spent several minutes explaining each part of the crossbow, how to hold it safely and how to fire before letting her hold it. 

Now that she was, Ava could hardly wait to try it out. 

They'd opted to stay near the house today and as Camila came back towards her, Ava's attention shifted to the two figures exiting the house. 

Beatrice and Lilith. 

She knew that they were planning on sparring, Beatrice was more than determined to figure out how to beat Lilith, demon powers or not. 

Her thoughts drifted back to the night before, from everything Beatrice had helped her with to the sensation of kissing her beneath the stars. 

Ava knew that Camila was still talking to her, and she definitely knew that whatever she was saying was important but as she saw Beatrice begin to stretch a few feet away, her racing thoughts came to an all but screeching halt.

Beatrice was wearing a long sleeved compression top, her default training gear now, but as she stretched her arms over her head, Ava saw a brief slip of skin. 

Oh wait. 

Those were abs. 

Ava heard three things in quick succession. 

A click. 

A rush of air. 

And the dull thud of an impact. 

The pain followed soon after and when Ava looked down, she could only stare. 

Yep. That was a crossbow bolt, right in her foot. 

"Did any of that make-" Camila turned back to face her, frowning as she saw Ava staring at the ground. 

Ava knew the second Camila realised what had happened. 

"Ava!" 

Camila's panic only made it very, very real. 

"Oh shit." 

"Oh my gosh!" 

"Cam!" 

"Ava!" 

Their voices were getting louder as they both began to panic. 

"Should I pull it out?" Ava asked. 

"I don't know!" 

Ava reached down and curled her fingers around the bolt and yanked on it, a fresh burst of pain had her seeing white for a moment. 

The blood that spurted out of the hole almost had her passing out right then and there. 

"Oh shit. Bad idea. Bad idea." Camila covered her mouth with her hand. 

If they were learning anything today, it was that Ava and Camila were not good to be alone together in a crisis. 

It was a lot of blood. 

"Should I like… put it back in?" Ava asked. 

"Absolutely not." Beatrice swept in, pulling the bolt from Ava's hand and throwing it to the ground. "It's okay Ava, come on, Lilith can you go ahead and get the first aid kit? Cam, help me?" 

They both pulled one of Ava's arms over their shoulders and helped her limp her way back up to the house. 

"The halo will heal you in a few minutes Ava." Beatrice said. "We're just going to stop the bleeding." 

She sounded so calm, it eased the instant panic that had surfaced. 

Even Camila seemed to relax. 

"I don't understand what happened." Camila frowned. 

Ava felt her cheeks burn. "It wasn't your fault, this was all me." 

As they entered the kitchen, Lilith had already set the first aid kit on the table and pulled a chair out which Ava was promptly deposited into. 

"Have you got this?" Lilith asked. 

Beatrice was already kneeling in front of Ava, fingers making quick work of undoing the laces of her shoe. "Yes." 

"Great, come on Camila, you can spar with me. You," Lilith pointed at Ava. "Try not to bleed everywhere. I’m not cleaning it up." 

Before Ava could think of a retort, Lilith was tugging Camila out of the house, the look on Camila's face gave Ava the impression that she would almost rather their roles be reversed.

"Shit." Ava hissed as Beatrice eased the shoe from her foot. 

"I know, I'm sorry." Beatrice replied. 

She rolled the sock from her foot and cradled it gently as she reached for the gauze Lilith had helpfully left out and pressed it to the wound. 

"It hasn't gone all the way through." Beatrice observed. "We'll just wait until it stops bleeding, okay?" 

The pain was pulsing, but Ava forced herself to focus on the steadiness of Beatrice's voice. 

"How much does it hurt?" Beatrice asked, lifting her gaze to finally meet Ava's. 

The concern was clear in her eyes. 

"It's not the worst I've experienced." Ava replied. 

"What happened?" Beatrice asked. 

She pulled the gauze back to check on the wound and covered it again, she shifted to rest the heel of Ava's foot on her thigh and used her free hand to rub the back of Ava's calf soothingly. 

"I zoned out." Ava sighed. She could feel her cheeks burning again. 

Beatrice clearly noticed. "There's more." 

"You'll laugh." 

"Why would I laugh?" 

"Trust me, you'll laugh."

The pain began to fade and Ava knew that when Beatrice checked again, the wound had almost finished healing. 

"It's not bleeding anymore." Beatrice said as she eased Ava's foot to the floor. She reached over to untie the laces of the other shoe and pulled it off. "And you've managed to avoid bleeding everywhere. Lilith would be proud." 

Beatrice got to her feet and held both hands out for Ava, who took them and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. 

There was a brief jolt of pain as her foot touched the ground. 

"What are you doing?" Ava asked. 

"Taking care of you." 

"I'm basically almost healed." Ava pointed out. 

"Doesn't mean you don't deserve to be taken care of." Beatrice said softly. 

Together they made their way up the stairs, and Beatrice directed Ava into the bedroom. 

"Get into your sweats and sit down, I'll be back in a minute." 

With another squeeze to both of her hands, Beatrice left the room. 

Ava felt more than a little confused, but did as Beatrice asked, sitting on the edge of the bed and tapping her fingers against her knees. 

Beatrice returned a couple of minutes later, a bowl in her hands, steam rising from the water within. She had a wash cloth over her wrist. 

She knelt down in front of Ava once more, dipping the cloth into the water and wringing it out. 

"Bea?" 

Beatrice took Ava's foot in her hand once more, cradling it gently by the heel. 

"Is this okay?" 

"Yeah, but you don't have to do this." 

"I know, but I want to." 

Beatrice took her time cleaning the blood from the skin, glancing up at regular intervals to make sure Ava was okay. 

Ava wasn't stupid. She'd spent years in a convent, for fucks sake. 

She may not know the bible by memory, but she knew enough to know the weight of this gesture. 

This was Beatrice using a part of her that was so important to her, her faith, to show her affection to Ava. 

No. Affection wasn't quite the right word. 

They had yet to say that word to each other, despite how clearly they both felt it. 

They didn't have to. 

They'd already found a hundred other ways to say it. 

This was just another way for Beatrice to show it. 

They'd say it one day. Ava knew that with certainty. 

When the moment was right, they'd share those words that bled into every interaction between them. 

Beatrice set Ava's freshly healed foot down and shifted to the other. 

"Will you tell me what distracted you enough to cause you to shoot yourself?" Beatrice asked quietly. 

"You probably already know this, but you have abs." 

Beatrice's movements halted. "Ah." 

"When you stretched, your shirt rolled up a bit. My brain just… Stopped." 

Beatrice somehow managed to look extremely apologetic and amused at the same time. 

"I'm sorry." 

"Oh no, don't apologise, I'm sorry for looking." 

A faint blush rose on Beatrice's cheeks and she ducked her head quickly to finish cleaning and drying Ava's feet. 

"I don't mind." 

"And may I say that what I did see was very impressive." 

She couldn't see Beatrice's face, but she imagined that the blush had only intensified. 

Beatrice lifted the previously injured foot once more and lifted it, pressing her lips to the spot where the bolt had impacted. 

"Perhaps we will put crossbow training on the back burner for now." 

"Probably for the best." Ava agreed. "What shall we do now?" 

Beatrice eased Ava's foot to the ground and smiled, rising up on her knees and placing her hands on either side of Ava's thighs. 

"Perhaps a nap?" Beatrice suggested. "And then if you're up for it, we could try and use the halo." 

"Do you think I can do it?" 

"I think you can do anything, and I'll be with you the entire time." 

Ava trusted in Beatrice's faith.

She reached for Beatrice once more. 

\--

"So…" Mary looked from the bloodied gauze to the equally bloody converse to Lilith and Camila. "What the fuck?" 

"Ava shot herself in the foot." Camila supplied. 

The girl looked exhausted. It was safe to assume that in her absence and Ava's apparent injury, Camila had drawn the short straw and wound up sparring with the relative half demon.

"Of course she did. How?" 

"Well she pointed it down and-" 

Mary held up a hand. "That much I figured, but _how?_ "

"That part is still a mystery." Lilith replied. 

She observed the space around the table carefully and let out an almost satisfied hum. 

"And I'm guessing wherever she is now, Beatrice is with her?" 

"They're probably in their room." Camila supplied. "Should we go check on them?" 

"Nah. Let them have their couple time." Mary replied. "Training is all well and good but they both need time to relax." 

If Beatrice had a soft spot for Ava, then Mary was definitely developing a soft spot for them both. 

\--

Ava watched Beatrice walk several feet away and turned to face her. 

They'd walked far enough into the trees that they were hidden from the house. Clearings were few and far between and at a push, Ava would guess there was little more than twenty feet between them.

Start small, Ava supposed. 

"How should I do this?" Ava called. 

"Close your eyes. Picture that night. That moment." Beatrice called back, even with her voice raised it still carried gently on the wind. 

Ava's heart felt warmer than the halo. 

"Picture me, holding you in my arms." Beatrice continued. "And then… Run." 

"What if I hurt you?" 

Had they been closer, Ava knew Beatrice would place a comforting hand on her cheek. 

"You won't. Have faith, Ava. Trust yourself."

Ava closed her eyes. 

She cast her thoughts back to the night before. 

The stars shining down on them. 

The ripples of the water. 

Beatrice's voice floating through the air. 

The smell of the soil. 

Beatrice's arms around her waist. 

The owl in the distance. 

Beatrice's heartbeat against her back. 

The moonlight in Beatrice's eyes. 

Beatrice. 

Beatrice, Beatrice, Beatrice. 

Ava felt the halo whirring beneath her skin. 

She was aware of her feet moving, picking up speed, her own heart racing in anticipation. 

Ava almost felt disconnected from her own body's movements as she felt serenity wash over her. 

Unburdened. 

Ava felt the ground fall away beneath her, a weightlessness taking over. 

Despite the flash of golden light shining through her eyelids, she didn't dare open her eyes. 

Not yet. 

She felt a burst from the halo, the wind rushing in her ears as she rushed towards her destination. 

When she finally opened her eyes, Beatrice was only millimetres away, arms open and ready as Ava fell into them. 

Beatrice stumbled backwards as she took Ava's weight, a quiet 'oh' escaping her lips. 

"You did it!" Beatrice gasped as they both fell to their knees. 

It was ArqTech all over again. 

Laughter fell from both of their lips as they fell to their knees. Awe, joy and pride shone clearly in Beatrice's eyes as she cradled Ava's face in both of her hands. 

"Ava, you did it." Beatrice said again. "It was… It was beautiful. You were beautiful." 

Ava sometimes wondered what could have happened back at ArqTech, had things been different, would Beatrice had kissed her then? 

But that didn't matter now, not as Beatrice leant in to kiss her and that pride in her eyes burned through Ava, settling in her veins. 

It hadn't just been the feeling of safety that had carried Ava into Beatrice's arms. 

And now Ava knew that it hadn't just been safety that helped her through that twenty feet of stone that day. 

It was love. 

It could only be love. 

Her love for Beatrice carried Ava through the unknown. 

Her fear stood no chance so long as Beatrice was there with waiting arms, ready to catch her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, you can find me [here](https://yashastrongarms.tumblr.com/)  
> Also i'm on [twitter!](https://twitter.com/RogueThirteen94)  
> Come say hey!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pls peep the extra chapter, this story has gotten OUT OF CONTROL

"You better have a good reason for dragging us out here." Mary said. 

Beatrice flashed her friends a quick look over her shoulder as she led them out of the house. 

"I do. Believe me." Beatrice replied. 

She knew that excitement carried through her voice and into her body language, that the others could see it in how she carried herself. 

Beatrice also knew that her friends were currently more surprised by how openly she was telegraphing her emotions at the moment. 

Oh, just wait until they saw what was about to happen. 

Ava was waiting by the trees, looking over expectantly when she saw them all appear. 

The distance was greater than any of their trial runs, but Ava was already getting more confident after each of those attempts. 

"You may want to move to the side." Beatrice said. 

Ava was still working out the logistics of when to ease up on the halo, Beatrice just had images of her taking them all out like bowling pins. 

Mary, Lilith and Camila each gave a curious look but obliged, moving a couple of feet away. 

Beatrice looked over towards Ava. 

"Ready?" She called. 

Ava jumped on the spot a couple of times and nodded. "Ready." 

She could see Ava close her eyes and knew that her girlfriend was following the steps they had put into place. 

As Ava started to run, it was as though the halo wrapped itself around her body with ribbons of gold, lighting Ava up like the ethereal being that she was. 

Ava's form flickered as she raced towards Beatrice, closing the distance between with such speed that Beatrice's eyes struggled to keep track. 

She raised her arms, ready to catch Ava should she need to. 

Ava's form solidified in front of her, feet skidding across the ground as her hands reached out for Beatrice.

As Ava came to a halt, her hands came up to rest on Beatrice's shoulders, only stumbling slightly as Beatrice set her hands on Ava's waist to keep her steady. 

It was no doubt Beatrice's eyes playing tricks, but it felt as though the last traces of the halo’s energy rose from Ava's body, wisps of gold floating between them. 

The display was just as beautiful now as it had been the first time Ava had done it. 

Beatrice was so proud of her. 

Ava's laughter was full of joy as she hugged Beatrice tight. 

"Good job." Beatrice whispered.

They only had a moment before the others were on them, Mary wrapping an arm affectionately around Ava's neck in a loose hug and tugging her back from Beatrice's embrace.

"That was fucking incredible, Ava!" 

"Honestly Mary, language. Please." Lilith sighed, but her smile was bright and genuine as she turned to Ava. "I knew you could do it." 

Camila was quick to leap in beside Beatrice, holding onto her arm as she regarded Ava with intrigue. 

"What was it like? Tell me everything." 

Ava looked a little lost for a moment as she was surrounded by their friends and words of praise, but once she flashed another look in Beatrice's direction the grin returned and she allowed herself to be pulled into the moment. 

Beatrice could only watch as Ava told them all about how it felt to move so fast. 

"So you figured out how to tap into that feeling of safety. What was it?" Lilith asked. 

Ava smiled, more to herself than anything. 

"Something that only the stars got to be witness to." 

\--

A few weeks ago, the idea of going to bed early seemed ridiculous. There was so much to do and experience. 

Plus she had already spent so much time confined to a bed, she hadn't been in a rush to spend more time than necessary in one. 

But like many things in Ava's life, that was before Beatrice. 

Since Beatrice had moved into her room, Ava had started to look forward to the time they retreated to their space after their walks before they settled in for the night. 

There was something inherently relaxing about them both stretching out on top of the covers, each doing their own things but just feeling entirely comfortable in each other's company. 

She loved these moments. 

Tonight, Beatrice was propped up against the headboard, reading one of the many books she had dug out from the bookshelf in the living room while Ava scrolled through memes on her phone, stretched out across the blankets beside her. 

The excitement from Ava's achievement still lingered between them, the feeling of weightlessness still echoed through her body. 

"Ava?" 

"Hm?" 

"Tomorrow, when we spar, do you want to try and tap into your strength?" 

Ava locked her phone and set it aside, considering Beatrice's words as she rolled onto her side to look at Beatrice. 

Beatrice had already folded down the corner of her page and set the book down on the nightstand, all of her attention on Ava now. 

Ava was already feeling much more confident in her abilities now, and she felt that it would only take a little bit of work to figure out how to channel the energy into her strength. 

But how far did her strength go? How much damage could she cause? 

The snap of Sister Frances' neck beneath her hands. 

Ava shivered as she sat up slowly. 

With no knowledge of how much strength the halo could give her, how could she moderate it? What if she hurt Beatrice? 

"No." 

Beatrice blinked at the harshness of Ava's voice and Ava hurried to explain herself. 

"I don't know how much strength I'd put out, Bea." Ava said quietly. "We already know that I'm capable of… You know." 

Understanding washed over Beatrice's expression immediately. 

"I'm not saying no to sparring with you, but I'm not going to try and channel the halo to fight you. I'm not willing to risk hurting you." 

Beatrice considered this for a few moments and held her hand out for Ava to take. When she did, Beatrice tugged her closer, tracing her fingers across Ava's in soft patterns. 

"I don't believe you'd ever hurt me." Beatrice replied. 

"Not intentionally, but it could happen by accident. Until I know the limits and how to moderate them, I can't risk you." 

"I respect that, even if I'm not the one you spar with, I'll still be there to help you, okay?" 

Ava nodded and watched Beatrice lean in to kiss her temple. 

"Trust in yourself, Ava." 

"I'll try." 

She may not be willing to test her strength on Beatrice. 

But Ava had somebody else in mind. 

\--

"Let me make sure I'm understanding you right…" Lilith began slowly. "You want to use me as a human crash test dummy so that you can test out your halo strength?" 

Ava nodded. "More like demon crash test dummy but yeah, pretty much." 

"Why me?" 

"Because I won't accidentally kill you if I punch you." 

Despite how casually Ava delivered the words, there was a dark look in her eyes that had Lilith wondering what was going on in her mind. 

It seemed like a genuine worry for her. 

And now Lilith understood why she wanted Lilith, and not Beatrice. 

It was strangely cute and endearing and Lilith had to roll her eyes. 

"Fine. But I'm not letting you get a free hit in. You've got to work for it." 

"I bet you say that to all the girls." 

"I'm going to kill you." 

  
  


\--

Beatrice rubbed a hand along Ava's shoulders as Lilith stepped out to join them in the backyard. 

"It's going to be different than using it for speed, isn't it?" Ava asked. 

"Yes, most likely." Beatrice agreed. 

She had been thinking about it through the night. 

Maybe the energy of the halo has a specific ebb and flow to it, something that happens as naturally as Ava breathing. 

If that is the case, then maybe it's just a case of becoming aware of that and controlling the flow. 

"You know when you become aware of your own breathing?" Beatrice asked. 

Ava raised both of her eyebrows at Beatrice. "So now you're just making me breathe manually?" 

"Sorry." Beatrice smiled. "But you know what I mean?" 

"I suppose?"

"When you're fighting, see if you can feel the flow of the halo. If you can, then try to control where that energy goes. Try to push it into your hands." 

"You think that's how it works?" Ava asked. 

"It's my working theory." 

"Are we doing this or what?" Lilith called. 

Beatrice glanced over to her and even she felt put off by the glee in her eyes. 

"Why does she look excited?" Beatrice asked. 

"Because I made a joke." 

"Ah. And now she wants to hurt you?" 

"Pretty much." 

"You're stronger now, you have your phasing and strength. Use them. You might not beat her today, but you can show her what you're capable of." 

Lilith was virtually unbeatable, but Beatrice had faith that with the halo, Ava would at least be able to give Lilith a run for her money. 

"Okay." Ava nodded. "Let's do this." 

Beatrice leaned in to press a quick kiss to Ava's cheek. 

"I'll be here cheering you on." 

\--

"This is going to be like Rocky fighting Creed." Mary said. "Maybe." 

"I haven't seen Rocky. Did Rocky win?" Camila asked. 

"No spoilers."

When they'd learned of Ava, Beatrice and Lilith's plan, it had only been natural for Mary and Camila to want to watch. 

They'd gotten drinks and settled on the step, a place that was very quickly becoming Mary's spot. 

At the very least it would be entertaining, at most they would see Ava use the halo to kick Lilith's ass. 

Both were good. 

Together they watched Ava and Beatrice talk quietly together, all the while Beatrice's hand moved across Ava's shoulders. 

When she saw Beatrice lean in to kiss Ava's cheek, Mary couldn't help but smile. 

"Mary?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Can I ask you something? It's a little personal." 

Ava and Lilith moved closer to each other and took up their stances. 

"Ask away." 

For a moment, Camila didn't say anything as the fight started, both watching as Ava inched her way closer to Lilith. 

When Lilith threw the first punch, Ava jumped back, grinning. 

"Bea and Ava, do they make you think of Shannon?" 

To say it wasn't what Mary expected to hear was an understatement. 

Mary watched Ava for a few moments, the way she was solely on the defence, every movement almost calculating as Lilith attacked her. 

In the past, Ava's defence was more akin to fear of being hit while she often seemed to prefer to be on the offence, blindly throwing punches without regard for strategy. 

Whatever Beatrice was teaching her was paying off. 

Mary turned her attention to Beatrice, stood far enough away from Ava and Lilith as to not be at risk of getting caught up in the crossfire, watching Ava with nothing short of pride.

“Not exactly.” Mary replied. “As a couple? Definitely not. But I can see Shannon in both of them.”    
  
In Beatrice she saw the same struggles that Shannon faced, the quiet determination to carry burdens alone.

In Ava she saw Shannon’s playful side, the puns and pranks and the joy that both her and Shannon had brought to their lives.

But Mary couldn’t compare her relationship with Shannon to the romance between Beatrice and Ava, it was just so different.

At most, seeing their relationship grow brought about the occasional sadness from Mary. If they had anything to say about it, Ava and Beatrice would have the chance at a future together, to experience so many firsts together.

But as much as it hurt, and as unfair it was that her time with Shannon had been cut short, they had still had some incredible years together.

This was Ava and Beatrice’s time.

And Shannon lived on in both of them, hell, all of them.

That helped.

\--

Ava was thankful for all the sparring sessions with Beatrice.

She would have been on her ass by now had she not been such a good teacher.

Ava had still been yet to land a solid punch, and as the minute stretched on, Lilith stopped holding back and began to let her powers bleed into her movements, in turn forcing Ava to test out her newfound speed.

She was conscious of Beatrice somewhere behind her, silently cheering her on and Mary and Camila watching from the step.

Ava closed her eyes for a bet as she moved backwards.

The Loch.   
  
The stars.   
  
Beatrice’s arms around her.

Ava opened her eyes.

Lilith moved forward with a flurry of blows.    
  
The weightlessness returned and Ava darted to the left, the scenery blurred around her but Ava pushed through the brief dizziness to push forward and throw a punch of her own.

Lilith span, just in time to deflect and shifted to kick at her, Ava phased through the attack.

What followed was what felt like several minutes of Ava using her speed to try and throw Lilith off, to find that opening and strike when she could, phasing out of the way when Lilith retaliated.

It was hard to push the frustration down.    
  
Identifying weaknesses wasn’t Ava’s forte. That was all Beatrice.

And she could feel herself getting tired now, they still hadn’t tested out how long the halo could last with the speed added in.

Ava was a moment too late phasing and was thrown back a few paces as Lilith’s fist connected with her face, the taste of copper immediately hitting her lips.

Over Lilith’s shoulder, Ava saw Beatrice’s hand cover her mouth, wincing at the sight of Ava’s pain.

“Had enough?” Lilith asked. 

Beatrice’s arms around her waist, her breath in her ear.

Ava focused on her own breathing. 

Beatrice was rarely wrong, if she thought that Ava could control the flow of the halo like she could control her breathing, then Ava was willing to try it.

Ava wiped the blood from her lip as she grinned at Lilith.

“Nope.”

She reckoned she had one shot in her, if Ava could do this.

As far as Ava was concerned, it was the only chance she had to land a hit.

Breathe in.   
  
Breathe out.

Ava could feel  _ something _ , hoping it was the halo’s energy as she used her speed to throw herself forward.

The familiar warmth spread through her body and Ava willed it to her point of focus, silently begging the halo to let it gather in her right hand.

She pictured holding Beatrice’s hand.

As Ava drew her arm back she saw a wisp of gold from the corner of her eye.

She watched as Lilith’s eyes widened.

Saw Beatrice’s do the same over her shoulder.

As Ava threw her punch, Lilith raised a hand as if to block the attack.

When Ava’s had connected, she felt the force burst from her hand, her eyes blinded briefly by a blanket of gold, her feet coming to such a sudden halt that Ava crashed forward to her knees.

Exhaustion settled over her body, not quite drained but extremely close to it, her hands shaking in the dirt.

When Ava looked up she expected to see Lilith standing above her, so it came as a surprise to find that she was actually a few feet away.

She was shaking her hand, pain faintly present in her features.

Ava dropped her gaze to the ground, the grooves in the ground from where Lilith had been standing to where she was now.

“Oh. Shit.”    
  
Ava didn’t notice Beatrice approaching until she was kneeling beside her, that wide grin full of pride etched onto her face.

“Did I do it?” Ava asked.

Beatrice laughed and pulled Ava into a hug. “It certainly looked like it.”    
  
“That actually hurt.” Lilith complained. 

“Consider us even.” Ava grumbled, leaning out of Beatrice’s hold to spit blood onto the ground.

“Round two?” Lilith asked.

“Fuck that.”   
  
Beatrice sighed. “Ava…”   
  
“Language? Right. I stand by it though, the halo will drop me like a rock if I do anything.”

“Let’s go inside then.” Beatrice said. “I think you’ve more than earned a break.”

\--

"Now that we know Ava can use the three core parts of the halo, I want to make sure training has more of a game to it." Lilith said. 

Beatrice looked up from her book, her hand stilling its movements in Ava's hair. 

She sat with her back against the arm of the sofa, Ava draped along her legs fast asleep. 

"What are you thinking?" Mary asked. 

"Firstly, that I would like to order this." Lilith turned the laptop towards Mary. 

Mary leaned in close and threw her head back to laugh. 

"Order them, that's amazing." 

Beatrice glanced over to Camila, both a little concerned about what Lilith was now planning. 

"It'll take a few days to get here, so I'm going to work on putting something together ready." 

"Look at you, going to so much effort to give Ava something fun to do." Mary grinned. "You love her." 

Lilith scowled. 

"You really want to antagonise me when you've seen what I'm buying?" Lilith challenged. 

"Yeah, I do." Mary replied immediately. 

\--

"You've made a lot of progress over the last few weeks." 

Lilith rarely gave praise freely, but when she did it was nothing short of genuine. 

Ava stretched her arms over her head and turned to grin at Lilith. 

"I've got some good teachers." 

"And while I'm not going to deny that, a mentor can only go so far. You've put the work in and it shows." 

Despite how much Ava now associated the loch with Beatrice, she'd be blind to ignore how it was also heavily tied into her relationship with Lilith. 

They came here every morning, and they would talk before heading back up. 

And then Ava would return in the dark to repeat a similar process with Beatrice. 

"I've been trying." Ava replied. 

"I know you have. Physically and mentally." Lilith said. 

Ava nodded. 

"Have you come to terms with whatever it was that was bothering you?" 

Ava looked to the clouds passing in the sky. 

"Getting there." 

The nightmares still happened, but only fleetingly, and while Ava still hadn't figured out how to control the amount of energy she used in her strength, she at least knew how to turn that power on. 

It wasn't complete control, but it was enough. 

"Is it possible to hate to hate someone for the actions that they committed against others, but not for what they did to you? Even if what they did to you was the same?" 

Lilith made a thoughtful sound as she considered this. 

"There's no rulebook on how to feel emotions, Ava." Lilith replied. "They're messy and complicated, as long as you don't feel that way because you feel like you deserved whatever it was that happened to you. Because whatever it was, you didn't deserve it." 

"I know, it's nothing like that, I promise. I didn't deserve it…" Ava sighed. "I'm still figuring it out. I'll tell you the story, one day." 

"There's no pressure, but I'll be here to listen should you choose to." 

"Cool." Ava grinned. "Now, I think we're both at our limit for mature grown up conversation. Wanna race back up?" 

Lilith smirked. "Powers on?" 

Ava thought of Beatrice and felt the whir of the halo. 

"You bet." 

\--

"So you finally won a race against Lilith."

Beatrice hadn't seen it happen, but she had heard the crash of Ava flying through the back door and the subsequent cheer that echoed through the whole house. 

"Yep." Ava grinned as she ducked out of the way of Beatrice's punch. "I don't think she expected it." 

Considering that Camila's account of events involved Lilith trying to push Ava out of the way, Ava's conclusion seemed to be fairly apt. 

Beatrice threw another punch, smiling when Ava caught her hand. 

"Next on the list is one of us trying to beat her in a fight." Ava said. 

"Before her powers, I would beat her quite regularly." Beatrice said. "Her weaknesses are still there, but now that she's so fast I can't get to them in time. Even with Mary or Camila with me." 

Ava was still holding her fist though she made no attempt to continue their fight. There was a thoughtfulness in Ava's eyes that had Beatrice relaxing her stance. 

"Well… If you know all of her weaknesses, I can do what I do best and be a nuisance." Ava said. "What if we fought her together?" 

It wasn't a bad idea. 

In fact, it was kind of brilliant. Beatrice couldn't believe that she hadn't thought of it sooner. 

"You'd want to fight her with me?" 

"Not your standard couple activity… But yeah, of course." 

Ava adjusted her hold on Beatrice's fist and gently opened her hand so that Ava could link their fingers together. 

"It makes sense too, not just because you're the best fighter and I'm an extremely distracting ball of energy." Ava continued. "But because we get each other? I know you can probably sync with anyone but this is still new to me and I think…" 

Ava seemed to recognise that she was rambling and stopped, taking a deep breath as she brought her thoughts back on track. 

"Have you ever seen Pacific Rim?" 

"Yes?" 

"We're drift compatible." Ava said. "We're always on the same page, we know each others needs and habits and I know that if we fight together then it'd translate over. I don't know, I just think we're kinda… Perfect?" 

Perfect. 

Ava had the uncanny ability of taking whatever subject they were talking about and turning it into something…  _ More.  _

She knew that when Ava called them perfect, she wasn't just talking about them being on the same page or the potential of them being some kind of badass fighting duo. 

No, when Ava called them perfect, she was talking about  _ them.  _

"You think we're perfect?" Beatrice asked. 

She let her hand drop from Ava's and let both of her hands come to rest on Ava's hips. 

"Dynamic duo, your skill, my chaos? We're a perfect team." Ava's smile softened as she let Beatrice walk her backwards until her back hit the tree. Ava's voice got even quieter as she continued. "But you know I'm not just talking about that." 

There it was. Ava being her usual, brilliant self, finding so many different ways to make her feelings so openly known. 

Beatrice took her hands off of Ava's waist and reached up to brush the hair from Ava's face. 

"I didn't think perfection was possible..." Beatrice said quietly. 

Perfection was a difficult term for Beatrice. She had always strived for it. She worked hard to master anything she set out to do. 

She thought back to New Years Eve, when Ava was against the wall and all Beatrice wanted to do was bracket her with her arms. 

To put Ava in a space that only existed to her. 

Beatrice didn't fight against that urge this time. 

She leaned in close, moving to rest her palms against the tree on either side of Ava's face. She watched Ava's smile grow as she moved closer still to kiss her gently. 

Falling for Ava? That was easy.

All the work they had put into building themselves and each other up? Easy. Natural. 

Perfect was still a difficult word for her to associate with anything else, but not this. 

Definitely not this. 

"But I think we're kind of perfect too." 

Ava's smile reflected everything that Beatrice felt, even as it turned a little teasing. 

"Are you about to make out with me?" 

"I'd very much like that, yes." 

"Because we're going to kick Lilith's ass together or because of what I said? Because I'm good with either." 

"Definitely the second one.”

"Cool." Ava kissed her. "I'm very much on board."

"I'm glad you agree." 

"Do you think it still counts as training? Practice makes perfect and all that. Not that I'm putting any of your skills into question." 

Ava was rambling. It was adorable. 

"Ava?" 

"Yep?" 

"I'm going to kiss you now, okay?" 

Ava nodded. "Okay." 

Beatrice leaned in again to kiss Ava. Each kiss was slow and deliberate as her lips moved against Ava's, taking her time to savour each moment that passed between them. 

The quiet sighs from Ava only made Beatrice smile, the way that even without touching her, Beatrice knew that Ava was relaxing against the tree, into Beatrice's kisses. 

When Ava's tongue came into play, Beatrice was thankful that she had braced herself against the tree. 

Ava's fingers curled into Beatrice's shirt. 

"Seriously?" Lilith's voice cut through all of the pleasantness. "Is this what counts as training?" 

Beatrice broke the kiss but with Ava still holding her shirt, she didn't pull away. 

They did both turn to where Lilith and Camila were approaching. 

"We already had this discussion," Ava called back. "Definitely counts as training. You guys should try it sometime." 

Lilith's scowl could have been seen from space while Camila turned away to clearly try to hide her amusement. 

"Ava, she's going to kill us." Beatrice warned quietly. 

"Nah," Ava turned back to kiss the corner of Beatrice's lips. "We're gonna kick her ass." 

\--

"Hey!" Ava jumped into the kitchen. 

"Jesus, Ava." Mary startled. "I'm holding a knife." 

"Sorry, have you seen Cam?" 

"Nah, why?" 

"I found cluedo. Wanna play?" 

Mary gestured to the chopping board. "Kinda busy babygirl, if you don't let me get back to it the others will be trying to figure out who killed Ms. Silva in the kitchen." 

Ava nodded and backed out of the room, saluting her friend. "You got it." 

Beatrice looked up from her spot on the floor, tiny booklet of instructions in her hands. 

"This game makes no sense, Ava." 

"If it's dumb we'll just play battleships." Ava shrugged. "Lilith ran away?" 

Beatrice rolled her eyes. "Bathroom." 

"Okay, you set up. I'm going to get Cam." 

Beatrice looked down at the box and frowned. 

Ava dipped out of the living room and hauled herself up the stairs, moving down the hallway to Camila and Lilith's room.

She knocked on the door. 

"Yo Cam, you in there?" 

There was some movement on the other side and the door cracked open slightly, enough to show Camila's grinning face. 

"Hey! Yeah, sorry, I was making some adjustments to my crossbow. What's up?" 

"We're gonna go all Sherlock and play Cluedo, you in?" 

"Ooh sure, I'll be down in five?" 

"Yeah no problem." Ava frowned as she saw past Camila. "Wait, two beds!?" 

"Um." 

"Oh my God, this entire time I thought you were like, spooning." 

Camila opened the door fully. "So, I can explain." 

Ava was lost. "What's there to explain?" 

"Mary said that if we gave you guys this room then you'd both just end up awkwardly staying in separate beds or there'd be a whole bed going to waste." 

Ava blinked at Camila's words but laughed when she finished. 

"That makes sense." Ava agreed. "But that is really funny though, you guys really just… Hang out in the shadows doing little things for me and Bea, huh?" 

Camila's smile wasn't exactly guilty, more like a child who had been caught with their hand in the cookie jar. 

"Don't tell Mary I told you." 

"I won't." Ava laughed. "I will tell Bea though." 

"I mean of course, I'm not dumb enough to ask you to keep secrets from her." 

"Cool. Good." Ava took a step back. "Cluedo, ten minutes, be there or be square." 

\--

"Those sneaks." Beatrice said with a surprising amount of fondness. 

Ava laughed as she flicked the light off and came to lay down beside Beatrice. 

"They're fully just constantly setting up scenarios for us." 

"I'm sure we would have found our way to this point regardless, I imagine it surprised them that it only took one night" Beatrice replied. "The arrangement did make sense so I can't fault Mary's logic." 

"That's true, plus those beds were tiny. Not much cuddle room." 

"I'm sure we would have managed." Beatrice said in that tone that Ava was quickly learning was her flirting voice. 

"Oh definitely." Ava agreed. "Constant spooning though." 

"You say that as if we don't end up doing that every night already." Beatrice pointed out. "You're a very cuddly person, you know." 

Ava grinned up at the ceiling. "Twelve years of not being able to feel anything below your neck will do that to a girl." 

In the brief moment of silence before she heard the sheets rustling, Ava knew that Beatrice's expression had turned apologetic. 

"I didn't mean -" 

"You didn't say anything to warrant the apology you're about to give." Ava rolled onto her side to smile at Beatrice. "My point is that I like being able to feel it all, but I like feeling you the most." 

"The feeling is mutual." Beatrice said, and in a quieter voice, continued. "And I know it isn't the same, but… Until you, this was something I had never experienced." 

"Holding someone?" 

"...Yes."

Ava appreciated the moments like this, where Beatrice felt comfortable enough to share the small threads from her past. 

"Have you ever been held?" 

"Only in the times by you." 

Ava considered this for a few moments. 

"I always fall asleep in your arms." 

"You do. I like it. I like that you feel safe when I hold you." 

Even when they slept, even at their most vulnerable Beatrice still took up the role of protector. 

"Do you want to try it?" Ava asked. "Being held?" 

"I'd like that." 

Ava held her arm out at her side in invitation as Beatrice shifted across the space towards her. 

"You like to sleep with your face against my neck." Beatrice said as she settled against her, her face coming to nestle into that spot. "Why?" 

Ava curled her arm around Beatrice's shoulders and pulled her closer. 

"You tell me."

Beatrice was quiet for a few moments and Ava felt the tension slip out of her body, felt the quiet exhale against her skin. 

"I can feel your pulse." Beatrice said quietly. "And your… Is that my soap?" 

Ava felt her cheeks burn. "Sorry, it smells better on you." 

"Not true." Beatrice whispered. "I understand now. Why you like to sleep like this." 

Ava hummed and pressed a kiss into Beatrice's hair. "I'll hold you like this for as long as you want me to."

One of Beatrice's arms draped over her waist, the other coming up between their bodies to rest her hand against Ava's heart. 

"Don't. Don't let go, please." 

Ava smiled into Beatrice's hair. "I won't." 

\--

Beatrice shot another quick glance in Ava's direction as they ate breakfast together. 

Lilith had dropped her back at the house after their run and promptly disappeared back out into the trees. 

Mary had grabbed the keys to the van and left a few minutes later. 

Ava had watched both women with confusion and mild suspicion, but had said nothing. 

Still hadn't said anything as she threw her legs into Beatrice's lap and glared at her toast. 

"What's on your mind?" Beatrice asked. "I fear that your breakfast may catch fire if you keep staring at it." 

Ava blinked, her expression softening as she looked up at Beatrice. 

"Sorry, where did Mary go?" 

"I believe to go and collect a package for Lilith." Beatrice replied. "Do you remember Lilith suggesting something to make training more fun for you?" 

Ava lit up briefly. "Yeah?" 

"She plans on keeping that promise, but that's all I know I'm afraid." 

Ava smiled. "Should you be telling me this?" 

"I was never told that it was a secret, and I'd have no intention of keeping things from you." 

Ava's smile was warm as she finally tore into her breakfast. 

"So we have a fun day ahead, huh?" 

Beatrice smiled. "I think so." 

Ava chewed on her toast thoughtfully. "So I've been thinking." 

"Oh?" 

"Do you think the halos power can extend to others?" 

Curious shift in conversation. 

"In what way?" Beatrice asked. 

"If I were to phase, would I be able to bring someone through with me? Or if I used my speed, would I be able carry someone?" 

Beatrice considered this for a few moments as she sipped at her coffee. 

"Those are good questions." Beatrice replied. 

There was nothing in the journal that had suggested such possibilities, but Ava had changed the game considerably. 

She had levitated once, there hadn't been anything in the journal about that, either. 

"Truthfully, I don't know." Beatrice replied honestly. "I'd imagine that if you did, it'd require more focus on controlling the flow of the halos energy, but then you'd need to consider the risks of how much energy it'd use to flow into another person."

"So phasing might be too much." Ava concluded. "But with the speed? I feel like if I'm holding someone then it wouldn't need me to control the flow that much, it's more me just supporting, right?"

"I suppose." Beatrice nodded. She saw the look in Ava’s eyes and smiled. “Do you want to try?”

“Do you trust me to try?” Ava asked.

Beatrice let her hand rest on Ava’s ankle and gave it a soft squeeze. “You don’t even have to ask.”   
  
Ava nodded. “Tomorrow? Instead of sparring?”   


“It’s a date.”

  
  
\--

“I’ve hidden flags throughout the forest. Red and hard to miss, there are thirty in total.” Lilith explained as she tore open the package on the table. “You’ll both be in teams, Camila and Mary, Ava and Beatrice.”   
  
Mary snorted. “As if it’d be any other way.”

“Wait, what are you gonna be doing?” Ava asked.

Lilith lifted the paintball gun from its box and held it up proudly.

Ava noticeably paled.

“Can’t make it easy for you.”

“...Do we not get guns?” Beatrice asked.

“No, but you do get these.” Lilith handed each of them a pair of goggles. “Safety first.”

Ava turned the goggles over in her hand and frowned. “So we’re going to be running through the forest looking for flags while you stalk us like the fucking terminator?”   
  
Lilith smiled at Ava. “Pretty much.”   
  
She placed the air canister onto the gun and filled it with paintballs.

Ava nudged Beatrice’s arm. “A nice romantic walk, right?”

When Beatrice smiled at her, Ava wiggled her eyebrows.

“A few stolen kisses while we win?” Ava continued.

“If I see you making out with her while we are playing I will make you pay.” Lilith warned.

“Oooh.” Ava grinned. “You’re going to punish me?”   
  
She’d dropped her voice a bit, and while Lilith wasn’t blind to the way Beatrice’s ears turned pink, she was more focused on the girl currently taunting her.

“Ava?”   
  
“Yo.”   
  
“Do me a favour and put your goggles on.”   
  
“Oh. Sure.” Ava put them on and turned to Beatrice. “Do I still look cute?”   
  
Beatrice smiled indulgently.

Lilith cleared her throat. “Ava?”   
  
Ava turned to face her.

Lilith pointed the gun at her chest and fired, a ball of pink hitting Ava square in the chest as Mary and Beatrice barely lifted their arms in time to shield their faces from splashes of paint.

“Ow! Mother fuck-”   
  
Lilith shot her again. Blue paint this time.

“Son of a-”   
  
Beatrice stepped in front of Ava before Lilith fired again. “Message received. We’ll behave.”   
  
Mary pointed at Lilith and then the splashes of paint that now decorated the walls of the kitchen.   
  
“You’re cleaning this up.”   
  
“That’s fair.”

\--

“This is so stressful.” Ava said, looking over her shoulder again. “Lilith wouldn’t hesitate to shoot me on sight and now I’ve got to keep an eye out for her fucking stalking us through the forest.”

She clutched her flags in her hand as they continued to walk, eyes scanning every tree for another flash of red.

“How is this supposed to help with training? Did she just do this to have an excuse to shoot me?”   
  
“While that is a possibility… I think it’s more an exercise of situational awareness and stealth.”   


Ava groaned. “And if she sees us we run?”   
  
“Unless you want to get shot again.”   
  
“No thanks. That shit hurt.”    
  
“Ava-”   
  
“Sorry, I know this is a game but now I’m stressed.”   
  
They continued to walk through the forest, collecting a few more flags as they went whilst keeping a careful eye out on their pursuer. 

"You still have paint in your hair." Beatrice mused as she dropped down from a tree, flag in hand. 

Ava ran her fingers through her locks to try and find the specks, leading Beatrice to move closer into Ava's space. 

She reached up to run her fingers through Ava's hair until most of the paint was gone. 

When she looked at Ava, she saw that familiar warmth in her eyes and smiled. 

"You look like you want to kiss me." Beatrice pointed out. 

Ava grinned and took a step back to lean against the tree. "I always look like I want to kiss you." 

"That's true." 

"So what's different about this one?" Ava asked. 

Ava's hand tangled into Beatrice's jacket and pulled, Beatrice moved willingly. 

"I don't know." Beatrice admitted. 

There was a warmth in Ava's eyes that she couldn't explain. 

It was similar to how Ava looked after they made out, or when Beatrice had first given her a hickey. 

"I just know that now that you're looking at me like that, all I want to do is kiss you too." 

"I think it's want that you're seeing, Bea." Ava said quietly. 

Beatrice glanced around, searching the area for any hints of Lilith before turning back to Ava. 

One kiss wouldn't hurt. 

She settled her hands on Ava's hips as she moved in to kiss her, smiling when Ava wrapped her arms around Beatrice's neck. 

Beatrice lost track of how long they kissed for, only that all she cared about in that moment was the kisses they shared. 

Want had been the right word, it was definitely what Beatrice was feeling. 

To want and to be able to indulge in that desire was still so new and thrilling. 

She felt Ava stiffen suddenly and before Beatrice could ask what was wrong, if she had done something wrong, Ava's hands were shifting to her shoulders and spinning their bodies around with force.

Beatrice's back hit the tree, Ava bringing her hands up to bracket the sides of Beatrice's face as Beatrice heard the all too familiar rush of air that could only come from a paintball gun followed by the sound of several balls impacting something. 

Not something. 

Ava. 

Beatrice glanced over Ava's shoulder and saw Lilith standing a few feet away, gun still trained on them both. 

"Oh… son of a bitch." Ava groaned into Beatrice's shoulder. 

Beatrice reached to touch Ava's back and surely enough her fingers came away smudged with paint. 

"What did I tell you about making out!" Lilith called. 

"If you knew how good these kisses were you'd want to have them too!" Ava called back. 

"I'm going to count to ten, you have until then to get out of my sight, you have an hour left to find more flags but this is costing you a point." 

Beatrice already had an apology on her lips as Ava pulled back, but fall silent at the brightness of Ava's grin. 

"No regrets." Ava said. "Right?" 

It may only be paint that Ava had been shot with, but in the moment she had still made the effort to shield and protect Beatrice. 

And now she had that smile on her face again. 

The one that made Beatrice feel like she was the most important being in all of existence. 

"No regrets." Beatrice agreed. 

\--

"Ava and Beatrice lost." Lilith declared. 

"Really? I feel like I won." Ava wiggled her eyebrows at Beatrice again. 

Judging from the look on Lilith's face, Mary figured it was safe to say she wished she hadn't left the gun outside. 

"That was fun though." Ava continued. "Stressful, but fun. Thank you Lilith." 

And as entertaining as it was to watch Lilith's exasperation, there was almost something funnier about the surprise on her face at Ava's sincerity. 

"Oh, you're welcome." 

"But I think we should all have guns next time." 

Lilith rolled her eyes. "I'll consider it." 

\--

Ava plucked at the sleeve of her hoody with a frown as she pulled it off on her way up the stairs. 

She knew her pants were just as covered in paint. 

Awesome. 

As she reached the bathroom, the door to hers and Beatrice's bedroom opened, her girlfriend stepping out with some clothes cradled in her arms. 

"Hi." 

Ava smiled. "Hey." 

Beatrice held the clothes out to her, Ava took them and realised immediately that while the sweatpants were hers, the grey sweater definitely was not. 

"Bea, this is yours?" 

Beatrice smiled. "I know, I have it under good authority that it is very comfortable. Figured you'd want something soft."

"As soft as your hugs?" 

Beatrice laughed. "You can have all of the hugs your heart desires when you're not covered in paint." 

"Now that is a fair trade." Ava agreed. "I'm gonna shower." 

"Have fun. Still up for our walk later?" 

They hadn't missed a night since they had started and Ava had no intention of breaking their streak. 

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, Bea." 

With one last parting smile, Ava slipped into the bathroom. 

It took some time for Ava to get all of the paint out of her hair, the bruises from the paintballs had long since faded but Ava could still remember the feeling of them impacting her skin. 

Still totally worth it to get to make out with Beatrice. 

It felt more intense than before, that Beatrice had seen the want in her eyes and reacted to it with enthusiasm. 

It had been hot, there was no other way to describe it. 

Ava stepped out of the shower and dried off before slipping into her clothes. 

The second the sweater touched her skin Ava sighed happily. 

It was so soft and while Ava had taken to using the same soap as Beatrice, it didn't compare at all to his feeling right now. 

Everything smelled like Beatrice. 

Yeah. She wasn't getting this sweater back until it stopped smelling like her. 

Ava made her way back to her room, pushing the door open and hovering in the doorway for a long moment. 

Beatrice had gotten changed while Ava had been showering and was now sat cross legged on the bed, a loose black t-shirt hanging from her shoulders. 

Her hair was tied up in a loose bun and her fingers curled loosely around a mug of tea as she turned another page of her book. 

On Ava's bedside table, sat another mug of tea and a small plate of chocolate chip cookies. 

Beatrice didn't like cookies. 

Ava's heart was so full. 

She walked towards the bed, smiling when Beatrice looked up and smiled back. 

As Ava grabbed the tea and cookies and got onto the bed, Beatrice lifted the hand holding the tea so that Ava could fit herself against Beatrice's side. As Ava settled comfortably against her, Beatrice loosely draped her arm around Ava's shoulder. 

"New book?" Ava asked. 

Beatrice hummed. "Alias Grace. I've wanted to read it for some time." 

Ava cradled the mug in her hands and felt warmth fill her. "Have you just started?" 

"First few pages." 

"Will you read to me?" 

Beatrice looked mildly surprised. "Really?" 

"Yeah, as long as you don't mind?" 

"No, no. I'd… I'd actually really like that." 

Ava smiled as Beatrice turned back to the first page and began to read. 

Today was already such a nice day. A friend who, despite shooting her multiple times with a paintball gun, had gone to the effort to give her something fun to do. 

Friends who she loved to be around and in return loved to be around her. 

A girlfriend who would give Ava her sweater and make her tea and read to her. 

Every day with these people was a great day, as far as Ava was concerned. 

Ava had always dreamed of a life of whirlwind and adventure, and while that was definitely what her life had become (in ways that her mind could never have come up with)

Ava loved this gentle domesticity more. 

She liked that her thoughts drifted to a future where, instead of jet setting across the world they settled instead on a small flat that contained Beatrice. 

To go from spending several years in a bed, the closest thing to love coming from the boy she shared a room with to being surrounded by so much love her heart felt like it was ready to burst… Sometimes she still couldn't believe it. 

Beatrice turned the page and while Ava was listening to her gentle voice, she lifted her head to watch Beatrice's lips move, pausing only to sip her tea, the movement bringing Ava closer into her. 

Oh. 

There was no more anger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, you can find me [here](https://yashastrongarms.tumblr.com/)  
> Also i'm on [twitter!](https://twitter.com/RogueThirteen94)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINAL CHAPTER  
> yes it's 13K no i didn't plan for this help this series is out of control
> 
> also pls peep the new tags

Ava rolled her shoulders as she looked over to Beatrice. 

The morning was still young and they'd opted to conduct their experiment in the clearing just before the loch. 

"You sure you want to try this?" Ava asked. 

Beatrice's smile was reassuring. "Of course. Do you? You don't have to do it if you're not comfortable." 

"No, I can do this. We can do this." 

"We can." Beatrice agreed coming to stand beside Ava. "I'm following your lead here, tell me what you need me to do." 

Ava thought for a few moments and curled an arm around Beatrice's waist. 

"Put your arm around my shoulder." Ava waited until Beatrice did so and held her closer. "I don't know what would work better, if I tried to carry your weight or if we shared it." 

"When you move, do you feel your feet touching the floor?" 

"Not exactly? But I know that they do." 

"We'll share the weight then, if that's okay with you?" 

Ava nodded. "It is just… Don't let go of me." 

"I won't." 

Ava took the moment to steady herself, to focus on Beatrice beside her. 

This was so much more stressful with Beatrice involved.

Ava didn't mind hurting herself through her actions, but to hurt Beatrice? 

She couldn't let herself fuck this up. 

"Take a deep breath." Ava said. "Are you ready?" 

"I'm ready." 

"Count of three, okay?" 

As she hit three, they began to run together and Ava called on the halo, willing its energy to flow through her. 

As everything around her began to blur as she was carried forward, Ava took comfort in the fact that she could still Beatrice holding onto her tightly. 

It was working. 

And maybe it was the universe telling Ava not to get cocky, that she was still human and hubris was something she could experience. 

Maybe it was just plain old clumsiness. 

But the moment Ava felt her foot catch in the root of a tree, she knew instantly that she was fucked. 

Which usually, fine. Whatever. 

But this time, her fuck up directly impacted Beatrice and as Ava felt them both tipping towards the floor, still at rapid speed, Ava knew one thing. 

This was going to hurt. 

Ava felt herself moving on instinct, curling her other arm around Beatrice and just… focusing. 

She felt the energy of the halo build to a bursting point and pushed it all towards the girl in her arms. 

As they quite literally bounced down the path towards the clearing, Ava felt every impact with enough force that she couldn't draw breath. 

She felt the energy stutter at the same moment her limbs began to slack. 

Ava was dimly aware of her hold on Beatrice slipping even as the arm around her shoulder remained strong and steadfast, even as they both came to a crashing halt near the loch. 

Face full of dirt, Ava could only let out a muffled groan. 

The pain was more of a distant memory already. 

She couldn't move. 

"Bea?" Ava called. 

She heard movement beside her and the faint feeling of hands on her shoulders as Beatrice turned her onto her back. 

"Ava. Ava, I'm here, are you okay?" 

Beyond looking a little ruffled and the streak of dirt on her forehead, Beatrice looked completely fine. 

Ava couldn't help but grin despite the clear concern in Beatrice's face. 

"I drained the halo." 

Beatrice shifted to kneel over her and took Ava's face in her hands. 

"I can understand why. I don't know what you did, but I felt the halo, Ava. I felt the energy and it was like… It was like you made me phase, but I could still feel you." 

That was a relief to hear. 

"So you're not hurt?" 

Beatrice smiled as she cradled Ava's head, she leaned forward to press a kiss to her forehead. 

"No, I'm not hurt." She slipped her hand into Ava's. "You can feel that?". 

"Yeah." 

Beatrice let out a sigh of relief, her entire posture seemed to relax slightly. She looked over her shoulder towards the house. 

"I should get you back." 

"No." Ava shook her head. "Please, I only need a few minutes, you don't need to drag me back to the house." 

Beatrice's expression was one of understanding as she looked back to Ava. 

"That's fine. Can I move you a little bit though? I want you to be comfortable." 

"I… Yeah, okay."

Beatrice was so careful as she linked her arms under Ava's and hauled her up, propping Ava up so that she could slip behind her and let Ava's weight settle against her chest. 

"I'm sorry that you're doing this." Ava said. 

Beatrice was moving backwards and Ava's only view was their loch. 

Not that she minded. 

"You have nothing to apologise for." Beatrice said. "To drain the halo was expected with the training we've been doing. Are you okay though, Ava?" 

Beatrice stopped moving and Ava felt her ease them both down towards the ground. Beatrice's legs stretched out on either side of her as Ava's body came to rest more securely against Beatrice's chest and she felt Beatrice's arms wrap loosely around her. 

They must be resting against a tree or something.

"I'm okay. This sucks and I hate… I hate being reminded about how literally everything I can do now comes from this chunk of metal in my back but…" Ava took a long breath to steady herself. "But I know that it's temporary. I just have to remember that it's temporary." 

She felt Beatrice's chin on her shoulder. "That's right. You're okay." 

She also definitely felt Beatrice shiver against her, it was only faint, but it was there. 

"You're cold." 

"It's okay Ava. It's not that bad." 

Ava still couldn't help but feel guilty. If she hadn't drained the halo its warmth would have probably been enough to keep Beatrice more conformable.

"I can feel you thinking." Beatrice said quietly. "You have nothing to feel guilty about. If the roles were reversed you'd be doing the same." 

That was true. 

"You can feel me thinking?" Ava asked, unable to keep the amusement out of her voice. 

"You're a very loud thinker. It's endearing." 

"Can you do something for me?" 

"Anything." 

"Hold my hands?" 

Immediately Beatrice's hands found hers and Ava watched as she linked their fingers together and brought their hands up to rest against Ava's chest, hugging her tighter. 

For a few minutes, Ava could only lie there was watch the water as Beatrice held her. Beatrice didn't push her to talk, but in the moments where Ava's thoughts started to drift, Beatrice was quick to brush their cheeks together to gently bring her back. 

"I know it was only brief, but what did you think about being Sonic for a few moments?" Ava asked. 

"Disorienting, I see why you had to keep your eyes closed when you first started to do it." Beatrice replied. "But after that? It was as you said, it was like flying." 

Beatrice turned her head to the side to kiss Ava's cheek. 

Ava felt her fingers twitch. 

"But mostly I'm just thankful that I got to experience it. Thank you for sharing that part of you with me." 

Ava gave her fingers an experimental flex and felt Beatrice squeeze her hand back in return. 

"Good, see?" Beatrice said. "You'll be on your feet in no time." 

Ava knew what she was going to do as soon as she could move. 

Beatrice was quiet for a few moments and much like she had noticed when her thoughts had slipped, Ava just knew that wherever Beatrice's thoughts had gone, they were now racing. 

"Your thoughts are loud too." Ava said. 

"Do you remember, back at ArqTech, when you melted the divinium knife?" 

And she had made her declaration about being the last Warrior Nun. 

"Yeah." 

"You spoke of Warrior Nuns dying one after another and asked who was next." 

Ava could picture the way Beatrice had looked at her in that moment clearly. 

"Mary was never a candidate for the halo, a combination of politics from her not officially being a sister warrior and no desire of wanting the role." 

Oh. Ava knew where this was going. 

"Lilith was next in line after Shannon. After Lilith, it was me." 

"I… I thought that might have been the case." Ava replied. "You and Lilith are so strong, it only makes sense. Did you want the halo?" 

Beatrice sighed as she moved, she shifted to press her forehead to Ava's spine, just above the halo. 

Ava felt a gentle pulse of warmth. 

"It was never about want. It was what was expected of me, as is my responsibility as a Sister Warrior." 

"But?" Ava prompted. 

"But did I want the halo? Yes and no." Beatrice replied. "It would have been a… A make or break moment, for lack of a better term." 

Beatrice paused to press a kiss to the back of Ava's neck, it felt like Beatrice was drawing comfort. 

"Had it happened, and the halo accepted me, then I knew that my soul was saved. That God saw me and loved me despite my… Despite what I had been told were flaws." Beatrice returned her head to Ava's shoulder. "And had it rejected me… Well, then that would have confirmed everything I had ever felt. I was a sin, my soul was doomed and there was nothing to be done." 

Ava wished that she could move, that she could give more comfort than what Beatrice was drawing herself. 

She flexed her fingers again, tried to roll her wrists. 

"That was before Melanie, before you… Before us." Beatrice said. "I know now that I'm not a sin, my soul is safe-" 

"Your soul is beautiful." Ava interrupted. 

"And I am starting to believe that." Beatrice said with a smile in her voice. "But that feeling… When I felt the energy of the halo enter me? That… Do you realise how significant that was?" 

Ava's limbs still felt heavy as she threw herself to the side with a severe lack of grace, almost toppling to the ground as she tried to turn herself around. 

Beatrice raised her hands to let Ava move as she needed. 

Ava pushed herself onto her hands when she was facing Beatrice. 

There were faint tears in her eyes as their gazes locked. 

"I do." Ava replied. "Probably not in the way that you're thinking, but I know how important it was to me." 

She placed her hands on Beatrice's shoulders and Beatrice covered her hands with her own to support her while Ava drew herself up to her knees. 

"You're possibly the first halo bearer to transfer the energy of the halo into another." 

"And you're the first non halo bearer to experience that." 

Beatrice settled her hands on Ava's waist and tipped her head back to look up at Ava. 

"The energy that I felt was warm. It felt like safety and home and every good memory I've ever experience running through my veins. That wasn't God, I could feel. Not entirely. That was you. It was your affections that I felt."

Beatrice let out a half laugh and withdrew one of her hands to wipe under her eyes. 

"I'm rambling now." Beatrice said. 

"You're picking up my bad habits." Ava teased. 

"What I'm trying to say is, God accepts me for who I am. I accept me for who I am. That energy was an extension of your feelings for me, and I accept those too." 

"Good, because they're not going anywhere." Ava replied. "And what you felt from the halo was only a fraction of what I feel for you." 

How many more words could they use to tell the other how deep the love they felt was before they actually used the word? 

How many more actions could they take to convey their feelings through touch or gestures? 

Ava didn't know, didn't care. 

She'd find them all and deliver them to Beatrice. Her heart wrapped in a golden ribbon. 

"I know." Beatrice said quietly. Ava cupped Beatrice's face in her hands. "I feel it everyday." 

"And I'll make sure you always do." 

Ava leaned down to press a kiss to Beatrice's forehead, lingering for a moment before drawing back. 

There were still tears clinging to the corners of Beatrice's eyes so Ava brought her thumbs up to wipe them away. 

As Beatrice's eyes fluttered shut, Ava leaned in once more. 

The first brush of her lips to Beatrice's eyelid felt softer than the wings of a butterfly, as she heard the soft inhale of breath from Beatrice's lips she repeated the action on the other side before drifting her attention downwards to press a fleeting kiss to Beatrice's waiting lips. 

"Do you feel it?" Ava asked quietly. 

"Yes. So much." 

"Do you want to head back up? Or stay?" 

"Stay." 

Beatrice's hand grabbed at her shirt to punctuate her request. 

"Okay." Ava kissed her again. "We'll stay." 

  
  


\--

"Ava won't be training today." 

Beatrice's tone was gentle but firm enough that left no room for argument. 

Not that Lilith planned on arguing, she'd seen how sluggish Ava had looked when she had returned to the house with Beatrice. 

They'd disappeared upstairs and ten minutes later, Beatrice had returned. 

Now she stood in the kitchen, gathering various snacks from the cupboards while Lilith and Camila watched. 

"Is she okay?" Camila asked. 

"She's fine." Beatrice replied. "We were trying to test a theory with the halo, it had mixed results but she drained it." 

Lilith raised an eyebrow as she shared a look with Camila while Beatrice's back was turned. 

What could they have been doing to drain the halo? 

"I'm guessing you'll be taking care of her every need then?" Lilith asked. 

Silence fell on them and with Beatrice's hair pulled up into its usual bun, it was easy to see the heat crawling up her neck. 

"That didn't come out as intended." Lilith admitted. "But that's fine, we'll check in to see if you'll be joining us for lunch and dinner." 

Beatrice turned to face them, though she didn't meet their gazes as she glanced towards the living room. 

"Thank you, I'll be back later." 

As soon as Beatrice was out of earshot, Camila snorted, only laughing harder when Lilith glared at her. 

"You looked like you went through the seven stages of grief when you said that." 

"I misspoke!" 

"More like Ava's innuendos are infecting your brain." 

"Shut up!" 

\--

Ava was stretched out on top of the covers of the bed when Beatrice entered. 

Her feet were propped up against the headboard as she studied the book open before her. 

She'd gotten changed out of her training clothes and info sweats. Beatrice noticed with some amusement that Ava was wearing her grey sweater. 

The sweater was oversized for Beatrice, but with Ava? It seemed to almost drown her. 

She looked so soft.

"You like that sweater, don't you?" 

Ava looked up and smiled. "It smells like you so it's like being constantly hugged by you. Not the same but like, it's close." 

Beatrice set the snacks she had gathered on the floor and moved to join Ava on the bed, sitting beside her and crossing her legs beneath her. 

"If I'd known you'd like it so much I would have given it to you sooner." Beatrice replied. 

Ava hummed happily and pulled the sleeves over her hands. "I should give you one of my hoodies." 

Beatrice couldn't help the amused smile as she regarded Ava, as she looked at the book open in front of her, Beatrice realised it was her photo album. 

"I don't want to point out the obvious, but you're a bit shorter than I am." Beatrice laughed as Ava turned her head to scowl at her. "I'm sorry!" 

"Yeah, yeah." Ava shook her head as her smile turned playful. "I see how it is, judging me for my height." 

"You can save all of humanity but may not be able to go on most roller-coasters at a theme park." 

"I'm pretty sure this counts as bullying, you know." Ava pouted. "Also you're what, two inches taller?" 

"True." Beatrice conceded. "To the second part, anyway." 

She slid a hand into Ava's hair and gave it an affectionate ruffle. 

"Still cute though." She said. 

"Damn right I am." 

As Beatrice scratched her nails against Ava's scalp, Ava let out a pleased hum and turned her head into the pressure. 

It was hard not to imagine a puppy getting behind their ears scratched. 

"How's the album coming along?" Beatrice asked, she shifted closer to Ava to get a better look. 

She cast an eye over each photo, all of them blinking in surprise at Ava's spontaneous shot at Christmas, Camila being the only one grinning at the camera as she made a peace sign. 

All of them outside the cottage before they left. 

A blurred shot of Beatrice driving. 

"You kept that one? It's blurry." 

"It's still got you in, so it stays." Ava said simply. 

"There will be other photos, Ava." 

"And like my memories, I want to keep them all." Ava explained as she looked over her shoulder at Beatrice. "Blurry or not." 

"Do you think of these lines in advance or do they just come to you?" 

Ava laughed and closed the album, leaning to the side to set it down on the ground. 

"We both know I don't think." 

"And we both know that isn't true." Beatrice replied. "You're more thoughtful than anybody, including yourself, ever gave you credit for." 

She watched as Ava's cheeks turned the faintest shade of pink before she dropped her face against the covers. 

"It's cute that you're embarrassed." 

Ava grumbled into covers.

"What was that?" 

Ava tilted her head to the side. "Bully." 

Beatrice's response died on her lips as she watched Ava blindly reached behind her to scratch at her back, grumble louder, and then try again. 

"Uh… Ava?" 

"I have an itch and I can't reach it." 

Beatrice could practically hear the pout. 

"Will you forgive me for being a bully if I offer to scratch it?" 

"You know you're not actually a-" 

"I know, I'm playing along." . 

"Right. Yes please on the scratching." 

Beatrice skimmed a hand along Ava's back until Ava confirmed the spot of her discomfort, right below the halo and scratched. 

A pleased purr found its way out of Ava's mouth. 

"Good?"

"Feels amazing, but it isn't getting rid of it." Ava practically whined. "I hate this." 

Beatrice dug her fingers in harder. "Do you want me to scratch underneath the sweater?" 

"I… I mean yeah, if you're comfortable with that?" 

Beatrice brought her hand down to the hem of the sweater, pausing for a moment before slipping her hand beneath the material. 

Ava's skin was so was so warm and so soft, she wanted to feel it all, to take her time. 

But Ava was fidgeting. 

Beatrice brushed her hand along Ava's spine to the spot right below the halo and scratched. 

She could feel the halo's warmth against her hand. 

Beatrice was mostly focused on the happy groan Ava let out, only slightly muffled by the blanket. 

"Better?" Beatrice asked. 

"God, so much better." 

Beatrice let her hand flatten against Ava's back, the edges of scar tissue brushing against fingertips. 

Would Ava mind if - 

"Bea?" Ava called softly. 

"Yes?" 

"You can touch you know? Touch, explore, look… Whatever you want to do, it's okay." 

And there it was again, Ava knowing her so well that it felt like she was in her head. 

She could sense Beatrice's wants and was giving her the invitation to explore them. 

"This is enough." Beatrice replied. 

She closed her eyes and traced her fingers down Ava's back, smiling as she felt Ava twitch when she reached the base of her spine. 

"What's with all the snacks?" Ava asked in a breathy voice. 

"I told Lilith that you'd be taking a break from training today, it's entirely up to you what you want to do with your time but I thought I'd bring them up." 

She brought her hand back up and flattened her palm against the halo and felt the hum of energy beneath her fingertips. 

In another life. 

Because if it came between a choice of a life where she had the halo or a life with Ava? 

Well, it wasn't really a choice. 

"Seriously? The whole day?" 

"Yes." 

"What can we do?" 

Beatrice pressed her fingers into Ava's shoulders, feeling the muscles that lay beneath the surface. Ava let out another pleased hum. 

"Entirely up to you, we can borrow the laptop and use netflix, we could go and spend time with -" 

Beatrice stopped as Ava shifted, withdrawing her hand from beneath the sweater just before Ava rolled onto her back and sat up, finally coming eye level to Beatrice.

"I have an idea." Ava said. 

And she had that look in her eye again, the one that Beatrice was seeing more and more and knew was often reflected back in her own.

The look she finally had a name for. 

Want. 

"And what's that?" Beatrice asked. 

"I- Hold that thought." Ava paused to pull her phone out and typed rapidly for a few moments before tossing her phone onto the discarded hoodie beside the bed.

"What was that about?" Beatrice asked. 

"Request for Mary, I'd forget it I didn't deal with it now." Ava explained. "So where were we?" 

Beatrice reached for Ava's hand and gave it a playful tug. 

"You were about to tell me what your idea is." 

"Right." Ava smiled. "Well, it involves us, maybe taking a nap, maybe not. But definitely begins with some kissing. I firmly believe we should be kissing." 

"Right now?" Beatrice asked as if she wasn't already leaning in. 

Ava grinned against her lips. "Not a moment to lose." 

\--

"So Ava and Bea were training and something happened that caused Ava to drain it so now she's taking the day off." Mary said. "Did I miss anything?" 

It was starting to feel like there was some kind of drama every time she left this group of idiots unattended. 

Lilith kicked her feet up onto the sofa. "Only the part where Beatrice then raided the kitchen and disappeared upstairs with enough snacks to feed a small army -" 

"Or a small girlfriend." Camila interrupted. 

"And has yet to return." Lilith finished. 

"Well they're probably just taking a nap" Mary shrugged. "Ava might be feeling pretty drained." 

Her phone buzzed three times in quick succession and Mary frowned as she pulled it from her pocket. 

"Or... They're definitely still awake." Mary said as she pulled up her messages. "Ava texted me." 

"Lazy." Lilith replied without missing a beat and then continued, softer. "What did she say?"

_Ava  
_ _Hey_

_Ava  
_ _Next time you go to get food and shit_

_Ava  
_ _Can you get me a new hoodie?_

_Ava  
_ _But like, a couple sizes bigger?_

"She just wants me to get her a new hoodie when I go shopping." 

Mary typed out a quick reply. 

_Mary  
_ _Sure. But what's with the text spam? Keep it in one message dumbass._

When a few minutes passed and Ava didn't respond, Mary figured it was safe to say her attention was now elsewhere. 

\--

Ava had said it before and she'd say it again. 

Beatrice kissing? An experience that was unmatched. 

The way Beatrice's hands cupped her face with so much gentleness as they traded even softer kisses, moving at the kind of pace only a couple who had all the time in the world to get familiar with each other had. 

And getting familiar with each other was their speciality. 

The way Beatrice brushed her fingers along the underside of Ava's jaw to hold her chin as she tilted her head to deepen the kiss had Ava actively trying to remember her own name. 

"You're getting way too good at this." Ava murmured. 

She was generally all too happy to let Beatrice take the lead, but couldn't resist ducking in just to give Beatrice's bottom lip a playful bite. 

The position she was in wasn't the most comfortable, her knees drawn up to bracket Beatrice while Beatrice sat between them, but Ava was far from willing to complain. 

"Is there such a thing as being too good at it?" Beatrice wondered. 

"Probably not," Ava leaned back in for another kiss. "But my heart is pounding out of my chest." 

Beatrice raised an eyebrow, concern faintly graced her features. "We can stop if you want?" 

"Oh definitely not." Ava laughed. "If I can spend the whole day doing this? Then I'm more than happy." 

"We will have to leave the room at some point, for real food and such." 

"We have snacks, real food can wait." 

"Choosing me over food? I feel special." 

Ava reached up to brush her hand along Beatrice's cheek. 

"You are special." 

"Flirt." 

Ava snorted. "It's true." 

Ava definitely also loved how she got to able to watch firsthand as Beatrice grew more comfortable being together. 

The touches were no longer as hesitant, given freely with the confidence of someone who knew they weren't going to be pushed away. 

And the flirting? Good God the flirting. 

Beatrice flirting had no right being as hot as it was. 

"You're still a flirt." 

"So are you. So we're even." 

Beatrice smiled, shaking her head slightly and Ava watched as a few more strands of hair fell from her bun. 

Ava reached up to skim her fingers across Beatrice's cheek, brushing some of the strands from her face.

"Can I take your hair down?" Ava asked. 

Beatrice only looked a little surprised by the request but quickly recovered and responded with a nod. 

Ava could count on one hand the times she had seen Beatrice's hair down. It felt like a mundane request but one that felt like it held a considerable significance. 

She reached around and freed Beatrice's hair from its bun, watching as it fell across her shoulders. 

Ava reached up to slide her fingers into dark locks, fingers scraping gently across Beatrice's scalp in a similar way to how Beatrice had always done for her. 

Beatrice smiled as she reached up to ease Ava's hands from her hair, threading their fingers together and pulling gently so that Ava tipped forward enough so that they could kiss. 

Ava felt a cramp in one of her legs and tried to stretch it out without interrupting the kiss. 

And then the pain kicked in and that up until that moment, Ava could say with confidence she had never experienced a true muscle cramp. 

Because holy fucking _shit._

Ava winced and groaned painfully into Beatrice's mouth, who pulled away instantly, eyes wide with concern as she held onto Ava's hands tighter. 

"Ava? What's wrong?" 

Ava stretched her leg out and groaned again. 

"Cramp. Holy shit, it's a cramp." 

Ava stretched her other leg back and leaned backwards, relying on Beatrice's hold on her hands to stop her from falling onto her back. 

Beatrice held her steady even as she shifted onto her knees, waiting as Ava stretched until the pain faded into a dull ache. 

"Oh that sucked."

"Are you okay?" Beatrice asked. "Why didn't you say you were cramping up?" 

"Head empty, only kisses." 

Beatrice's expression was exasperated, yet fond. "We wouldn't have stopped, it's just about finding a position that is more comfortable." 

Ava tightened her hold on Beatrice's hands to draw herself back up to Beatrice's level, making sure to add a pout for good measure. 

"That was a good position, I didn't want it to…" 

She trailed off when she got a close up of Beatrice's face, noted the thoughtfulness in that gaze that told Ava there were definite ideas forming. 

And then there was the heated intensity and deep breaths from parted lips that told Ava these were ideas that she definitely wanted to be a part of. 

This was definitely a Beatrice that Ava wanted to encourage out of her shell. She'd shown herself when they'd experimented with hickeys and briefly the day that Beatrice had pinned her to the tree. 

"What are you thinking?" 

Beatrice's fingers flexed around Ava's hands. "Do you trust me?" 

"You know I do." 

"Can I show you?" 

"Yes." 

"Can you bring your legs together?" Beatrice asked. 

"But you're…" As Ava began to reply, Beatrice shifted to throw one leg over Ava's. "Ah, right." 

Ava did as Beatrice asked and watched as Beatrice shifted again until she was kneeling over Ava. She pulled on Ava's hands to bring her in for a barely there brush of her lips. 

"Now lean back." Beatrice whispered. "Slowly. I've got you." 

Beatrice couldn't have given the command in a gentler voice and yet it still had a shiver running down Ava's spine. 

At some point Ava knew she was going to have to actually address why being praised or told what to do by Beatrice had such an effect on her. 

But that was a future problem for future Ava. 

Current Ava was far too focused on doing what was asked, leaning back slowly as she felt Beatrice following her, kissing her gently the entire time until her back finally hit the bed, her arms outstretched on either side of her, Beatrice's hands still holding them. 

Ava closed her eyes as she felt Beatrice smile into the kiss, the loose waves of hair tickling her cheek as she felt Beatrice shift and - 

Beatrice had leaned forward and for the briefest moment before she adjusted her position, Ava felt Beatrice's hips skim against her own. 

She was practically lying on Ava. 

Ava's brain was trying not to short circuit. 

And then she felt Beatrice moving their hands, sliding them across soft sheets until they were pinned above her head, their fingers still threaded together, a constant anchor. 

Ava's brain was now currently trying to reboot. 

"Okay?" Beatrice asked. 

"Definitely." 

Ava had to give herself a pat on the back for managing to make a word work. 

Beatrice drew back to smile before she turned her attention south, her nose skimming across the vein along Ava's throat. 

"You sure you don't want to get food?" 

"Yeah… Hard pass." Ava replied. "I want to experience this whole thing." 

This was going to be the thing that killed her. 

Beatrice fucking pinning her to the bed asking her about food when she looked ready to devour her like a snack? Fucking hell. 

Beatrice didn't answer, instead opted to press her lips to Ava's pulse point and began to suck. 

Ava felt her breath catch on the exhale and flexed her fingers against Beatrice's. 

It was an exercise of control for Ava to keep still as Beatrice continued to leave a trail of marks along Ava's throat. 

Ava could feel Beatrice smiling against her skin every time she twitched or made a sound beneath her. 

It was only a matter of time before it all became too much, before it felt like she was going to combust entirely. 

As she let out a half whimper, Ava did her best to cover that sound with a gentle, "Bea…"

When Beatrice lifted her head to meet her gaze, Ava knew she hadn't covered it up entirely. 

Beatrice's eyes were dark and heavy and carried enough intensity that it left Ava feeling considerably more breathless. 

"Kiss me?" Ava asked. 

Beatrice was all too happy to oblige, skipping sweet and gentle and going straight to licking her way into Ava's mouth. 

Yep. 

Combustion was imminent. 

\--

Lilith made her way up the stairs, humming the tune of whatever pop song Camila had been playing under her breath. 

Mary had tried to convince Lilith to leave the pair alone, but Lilith had been quick to point out that she had made an agreement with Beatrice to check in with them. 

So Lilith was just following through as she reached their room, gave the door a cursory knock before letting herself in. 

"We've made sandwiches if you two want to -" 

She froze in place as her gaze fell on the bed in the same instant that Beatrice's head shot up, eyes wide as they stared at each other. 

Neither of them spoke, it was only as Beatrice's began to turn a shade of red as her eyes got increasingly more panicked did Ava tip her head backwards to offer Lilith a sheepish upside down smile. 

Ava tried to wave but with Beatrice's hands still firmly holding them against the covers it was little more than a vague waggling of fingers. 

"Hey Lilith, what's up?" 

Lilith was choosing not to pay attention to the breathlessness of Ava's voice or the flush on her cheeks that definitely had nothing to do with embarrassment at the position Lilith had caught them in. 

"I… Sandwiches."

"Cool." Ava lifted her head to look at Beatrice for a moment. "We'll be down in ten?"

"Right. Okay. Sounds good." 

Lilith turned quickly to leave the room, as an afterthought she reached behind her to pull the door closed. 

She needed bleach for her eyeballs. 

\--

Beatrice sat up and pressed her hands to her face. 

Lilith was long gone but the embarrassment was still burning fresh through her. 

The moment that door had opened it had been like a bucket of water had been tipped over her. 

The fact that Lilith looked relatively scandalised at catching them didn't help. 

Beatrice chanced a look at Ava. 

Ava looked extremely amused at the whole situation, her grin only fading slightly when she met Beatrice's gaze.

"Are you okay?" 

"I'm so embarrassed." Beatrice admitted. 

"What for? It's not like she caught us -" Ava faltered. "You know…" 

"We're not exactly in an innocent position though." Beatrice mumbled. 

"So what? Not our fault Lilith doesn't know how to wait before entering a room." 

Ava reached for Beatrice's shirt and used the leverage to pull herself up, laughing softly at Beatrice's embarrassment. 

"Aw, Bea…" Ava threw an arm around Beatrice's shoulders and pressed a kiss into her hair. "You're so cute." 

"I'm glad my suffering brings you joy." Beatrice grumbled. 

"We're in a relationship, we're going to kiss and… Stuff. We know that, they know that." Ava shrugged. "Nothing to be embarrassed about." 

Ava drew back to look at Beatrice. 

Her cheeks were still flushed, lips swollen and smiling. 

Beatrice had to reach out and brush her thumb across those lips. 

She'd done that to Ava. 

"I think it's always going to be a little embarrassing when someone who is essentially my sister walks in on me with my girlfriend." Beatrice said. 

She didn't miss the excited little wiggle that Ava did at her words. 

"What?" 

"I like it when you call me your girlfriend." 

"I like saying it too." 

Ava grinned. "We should head down, otherwise I'm going to kiss you again and we're not going to move any time soon." 

She leant over the bed and grabbed the hair tie and handed it back to Beatrice, who accepted it and slipped it onto her wrist. 

Beatrice took one more fleeting kiss. 

"I think I'll keep it down for now." 

  
  


\--

Ava settled on the step and pulled her hood up to shield herself from the heavy chill that had already began to settle. 

Beatrice was already shivering as she came to crouch in front of her. 

"You don't have to do this, you know." Ava said. 

Even she was struggling with how cold it felt today. 

"I do." Beatrice replied. "It's fine, but you have to pay attention, okay?" 

Ava gave Beatrice a once over and nodded. "Not a problem." 

"And by that I mean everything, not just watching me." 

"Pretty sure I can do both." 

Beatrice hummed and leaned in to press a kiss to Ava's forehead. "You better." 

She moved away from Ava towards where Lilith waited and the pair exchanged a few words before they began to spar. 

Ava pulled out her phone and directed it towards the pair. 

Beatrice was doing this for Ava to learn from, it wouldn't be fair to her if Ava got too distracted by watching Beatrice being her badass self. 

"What are you doing?" Camila asked. 

Ava lifted her head and smiled up at her friend. 

"Filming Bea and Lilith fighting." 

"Why?" 

"I'm not good at identifying weak spots, Bea is. She knows Lilith's weaknesses so I'm watching to learn." 

She winced as she watched Lilith land a heavy blow to Beatrice's right cheek. 

"If Bea is going to get hurt just to help me be better, then I'm going to be the best that I can." 

"But why film?" Camila asked, sitting down beside her. 

"Because I'm going to miss things. If I film it, I can look back and review it." 

Ava kept her attention on the fighting even as she felt Camila's eyes on her. 

"There's more to it than that, what are you two planning?" 

Ava had to fight the urge to grin. "I'm just taking my training very seriously." 

  
  


\--

As Beatrice moved to slide beneath the covers and cast a curious glance at Ava's phone. 

"You recorded it?"

Ava hummed. "Figured I'd miss some things and it'd help me if you could be next to me to go over it." 

"Smart." 

Ava looked up from her phone and reached over to brush her knuckles along Beatrice's cheek, in the hours since the fight, a bruise had already formed. 

"Does it hurt?" Ava asked. 

"Only aches a little." 

Ava leaned over to kiss the bruise. 

"I'm sorry you got hurt." 

"Don't be, sometimes you have to lose a battle to win a war." Beatrice replied. 

She saw Ava's eyes brighten with recognition at Beatrice's words. 

"If Lilith pulls out a shotgun she'll never walk again." Ava mumbled under her breath. 

Beatrice knew Ava meant it jokingly but there was still a seriousness to her tone that told Beatrice that Ava still hadn't entirely moved on from that incident. 

"I wouldn't worry about that." Beatrice replied, she slipped an arm around Ava's shoulders. 

"We're going to train tomorrow right?" Ava asked. 

Ava locked her phone and set it on the bed side table before sliding over to rest her head on Beatrice's shoulder. 

"Yes. I was thinking we should revisit you channeling your strength first and then start working on a strategy?" 

"I'm not going to be practicing strength on you right?" 

"No." Beatrice replied quickly, she rested her chin on Ava's head. "I had something else in mind." 

  
  


\--

"I kinda feel bad about doing this." Ava said. "Poor defenceless trees." 

Beatrice smiled as she moved to stand beside her. 

"Lilith wouldn't stand still to let you practice your strength, this is the only way you can have the chance to really try and practice." 

Ava gave the tree a pat. "Your sacrifice will not be in vain." 

Since she'd blown out the halo a couple of days earlier, they'd taken a nice little break from all things training, the only thing Ava had insisted on continuing had been her morning runs with Lilith. 

But now she was ready to get back into it, and as Ava channeled the halo into her hand and threw that first punch, she felt confident. 

But mostly pain. 

The bark crumbled beneath her fist and she cursed under her breath as she drew her hand back. 

"Okay, so, that hurt." 

Beatrice winced sympathetically. "You've been able to block the pain before, right?" 

Ava shook her hand until the pain began to ebb. "Yeah, but it hasn't been a conscious thing." 

Beatrice hummed thoughtfully.

Ava loved watching Beatrice in these moments, watching the thoughts race, the focus she'd get in her eyes as she tried to draw her conclusions. 

"Another thing to work on?" Ava asked. 

"Possibly, that'll come with time." Beatrice replied. "When you threw the punch, what was the pain scale like?" 

"Five?" Ava looked down at her hand and flexed her fingers. "The energy the halo puts out doesn't add to the pain I feel."

"That's good." Beatrice nodded. "So we don't have to worry about you breaking your own hand with the force." 

"Yep." Ava turned back to the tree. "I'm gonna try again." 

"If it's going to hurt you-" 

"It's only temporary." Ava grinned. "Plus you'll kiss it better right?" 

Beatrice rolled her eyes. "Of course." 

"Cool." 

She was gonna beat the shit out of this tree and Beatrice was going to kiss her hands better. 

Win win situation. 

Ava let the halo flare again and threw punch after punch, with each one it became easier to control the flow of the energy, the amount of force that came with it. 

The tree didn't break in half, which would have been cool, but she had still caused a decent amount of damage. 

She couldn't feel her hands. 

Ava took a few steadying breaths before straightening up, feeling the energy of the halo fade. 

She turned toward Beatrice, pausing as she took in the quiet awe on her face. 

"What?" Ava smiled, taking a few steps to meet her. 

Beatrice blinked suddenly as though she was forcing her thoughts back into order but met her smile as Ava reached her. 

Ava took in Beatrice's form in the lingering lights of the sun. 

The glow of her skin, the scattering of freckles that Ava longed to trace, to count. 

Her eyes. 

Tiny bursts of gold staring right into her soul. 

Beatrice's voice was quiet when she finally replied. 

"Sometimes I forget just how beautiful the halo is. How beautiful you look when it lights up." 

Ava was speechless, but not for the reason that Beatrice must think. 

Because how could Beatrice talk about how beautiful the halo was? Didn't she realise that right now, it looked like she carried halos in her eyes? 

The angels must be looking on with jealousy at the beauty Ava was lucky enough to see everyday. 

Ava reached for Beatrice's cheek, thumb tracing that bruise. 

"The halo has nothing on you, Bea." 

Beatrice took Ava's hand in her own and brought them to her lips, taking her time to leave kisses on each knuckle. 

"Or you. The halo has never been what makes you beautiful, Ava, it only highlights it." 

"Without the halo, I wouldn't be here." Ava pointed out quietly. 

She felt her thoughts shift and pull away, to the actions and choices that had been out of get control that had brought her to this moment. 

One action that had changed her life forever. 

"Hey," Beatrice called gently, at some point during Ava's drifting thoughts she had cupped her cheek. "Come back to me, it's okay." 

It was easy to focus on Beatrice's eyes, her face, her touch and to let those thoughts fade into the background once more. 

"There you are." Beatrice said softly. "Where did you go?" 

Ava let out a slow breath. "Just… The past." 

"Do you want to talk about it?" 

"Not here. I-" 

"Do you want to go to the Loch?" Beatrice asked. 

"It's too early, we don't usually go until after dinner and -" 

"Ava." Beatrice's voice was still soft. "None of that matters, all that matters is what you want to do now. Do you want to go to the Loch to talk?" 

Ava was already nodding. "Yeah." 

"Okay." Beatrice leaned in to kiss her temple. "Let's go."

  
  


\--

  
It was surprisingly difficult to pin down Ava's energy as Beatrice followed her down towards the Loch. 

There was an anxiety to her movements as they walked but Beatrice suspected that was more from Ava's urgency to get to the Loch rather than whatever it was that she needed to say.

Beatrice still didn't know where Ava had gone for that moment, but she was glad that Ava was comfortable enough with her to share it. 

As they reached the Loch, Ava continued ahead and sat down, her fingers skimmed across the ground as she steadied herself. 

Beatrice moved to sit beside her. 

They were both quiet for several moments as Ava searched for the words she needed. 

"A few days ago I asked Lilith if it was possible to hate someone for what they had done to others, but not to hate them despite them doing the same to you." 

"What did she say?" Beatrice asked. 

"That emotions are complicated and there's no wrong way to feel them." Ava replied. "But I think I've finally figured it all out now." 

Beatrice waited patiently as Ava drew her knees up to her chest and turned her head to meet Beatrice's gaze, resting her cheek on her knees. 

“I’m not mad at Sister Frances anymore. At least not for what she did to me.” Ava said quietly.   
  
“Oh?”   
  
“In a way, dying was the best thing that could have happened to me.” 

Beatrice felt her heart drop a little. “Ava-”  
  
“Because it brought me to you.”

_Oh._

This time it was Beatrice's stomach that felt like it was dropping, flipping, tying itself in knots just from the heaviness of Ava's words.

And that wasn't even taking into account the adoration in Ava's eyes. 

"I can never forgive her for what she did to who knows how many other kids, what she was going to do to Diego… But we never would have met if she hadn't done that to me." She reached for Beatrice's hand and let out a quiet sigh of relief when Beatrice threaded their fingers together without hesitation. "I wouldn't have known Mary, Lilith, Cam… You." 

Beatrice knew that Ava was right, but to have it laid out so bare was still somewhat hard to handle. 

It truly had taken Ava dying for their paths to align. 

"What are the odds right?" Ava asked quietly. "Call it divine intervention or pure coincidence, but the whole universe and we get to exist together because of what she did to me. How can I hate her for that?" 

Oh. 

This girl was something else. 

"I don't think it matters what it is." Beatrice replied, she tugged on Ava's hand and waited for her to unfurl herself and move closer until the space between them was almost nonexistent. "All that matters is that I found you and you found me." 

Ava smiled. "And we have the rest of our lives to figure out the rest." 

It wasn't a question. 

"That's right." 

"I'm gonna kiss you now." 

"Good." 

\--

"So Ava beat up a tree and then they left?" Mary asked. 

Camila nodded. "Pretty much." 

Lilith sighed. "I'm not going to look for them. Not after last time." 

"You're saying that as if it wasn't your own damn fault for walking in on them." Mary laughed. 

"You really should knock before going into a room Lil." Camila chided gently. "Especially their room." 

"I did knock!" 

Mary could only laugh harder at Lilith's scowl. 

"Did you wait for them to say come in or did you just.. Knock and barge in?" 

The look on Lilith's face was all the answer Mary needed. 

"Yeah, no sympathy. Don't want to see our friends making out in their bedroom? Wait after knocking." 

Mary had to give credit where it was due though, she knew that Ava made Beatrice feel comfortable but Mary still hadn't expected their Beatrice to pin Ava down. 

She was oddly proud. 

"Do you think they'll make it back for dinner?" Camila asked. 

"Probably not." Mary replied. 

\--

Ava had improved so much. 

Beatrice knew she was a little biased, considering their relationship, but their sparring sessions had long since shifted from her walking Ava through each movement step by step, to them falling into a much more familiar rhythm. 

It felt more like a dance now, throwing and deflecting punches, not with the goal of one upping each other but to just move with the familiarity of two people who understood each other. 

She probably shouldn't think of it as poetically as she was, but it was hard not to. 

Not when Ava looked so happy. 

Even with the light mist of rain that had settled and soaked them through, Ava remained in high spirits, ducking and dodging, halo flaring whenever she used it to throw Beatrice off her rhythm. 

It was fun, as things that involved Ava usually were. 

Ava phased as Beatrice threw a punch, stepping through her with ease. 

"That could be a good distraction you know." Ava called. 

Beatrice turned around to face Ava once more. "What?" 

"If I'm between you both and I phase it's like… Surprise attack!" 

Ava dashed to the side, phasing through a tree and out of sight.

Well now she was just showing off. 

Beatrice stopped and took a moment to focus on the sounds around her, the rain pattering off of every surface. 

The rush of sound from her left head Beatrice spinning and taking a step to the side as Ava flew past her, laughing when she realised she'd been caught. 

"Nice try." Beatrice called. 

Ava jumped on the spot. "Thanks!" 

"I think you've got a point too. It could give us a good window." Beatrice added. "Though I like my idea better." 

Beatrice figured that if Ava used her speed just right then she would be able to essentially launch Beatrice at Lilith. 

"What if I spin you too fast and the momentum of it all means you break your leg or something?" 

Ava began to move forward once more throwing another punch and feinting to the side before Beatrice could counter and threw another, this time catching Beatrice in the ribs. 

"Good job." Beatrice praised. "And that wouldn't happen, Ava." 

"I've seen UFC fighters legs snap like a noodle just because they kicked a shin too hard. Anything is possible." 

"Will you at least humour me and let us try?" Beatrice asked. 

Ava laughed. "Starting to think you just want me to go all Dirty Dancing on you." 

"You wouldn't hear me complaining." Beatrice shot back. 

As she blocked another one of Ava's punches, her feet skidded against the ground as she struggled to find purchase as the ground turned to mud. 

The rain really was being persistent. 

"We should wrap this up soon." Beatrice said. "It's only going to cause more problems." 

Ava's grin could only be described as shit eating eyebrows wiggling as she remained just out of Beatrice's reach. 

"What? You're not getting tired on me are you?" Ava's tone was teasing. 

Okay, overconfident cocky Ava was a bit of a brat. 

Beatrice met Ava's grin with one of her own and started to move closer, taking her time with each step. 

"Not even close." Beatrice replied. "You sure you can handle me?" 

"Oh I definitely want to try." 

If Ava wanted a challenge, then she'd give her a challenge. 

She threw a rapid jab, catching Ava off guard as the other girl threw her hands up to deflect it. 

Ava blinked quickly in surprise but the grin didn't fade. 

"We'll dial it up a bit." Beatrice said. 

"Do your worst." 

That was all Beatrice needed, she threw herself into the fight with more energy, throwing strike after strike at Ava, the familiar burst of pride blooming in her chest as Ava tried to take it in stride, shifting into a more defensive stance and moving back to keep out of range as her expression grew more focused. 

"Good. You're doing good." Beatrice praised. "Don't forget to keep light on your feet." 

Ava blinked and Beatrice saw the moment her focus lapsed. 

It felt like she was playing a little dirty, using Ava's clear enjoyment of receiving praise just to get the upper hand, but truthfully Beatrice knew that Ava wouldn't care. 

Plus the praise was warranted, Beatrice wasn't about to deny Ava that. 

"Keep focused on finding the opening." Beatrice instructed. 

Ava feinted to the left slightly as Beatrice threw another punch, only to lunge forward with one of her own. 

Instinct kicked in and Beatrice slapped the punch away with her left hand and reached forward with her right, fingers closing around Ava's throat as she let her momentum carry her forward. 

When Ava's back hit the tree, the moment seemed to freeze. 

Ava stared at her with wide eyes as Beatrice registered her fingers curled around Ava's neck, raindrops dripped from Ava's chin and hair onto Beatrice's hand. 

There was a stuttering flicker of light from the halo as Ava drew a sharp breath that had Beatrice relaxing her grip and dropped her hand to her side. 

"Ava, are you okay? I'm so sorry." 

Ava nodded slowly, turning her head to the side to look away from Beatrice. "Yep. Yep, everything's fine." 

Beatrice recognised Ava's tone, high and more than a little breathless and the worry she felt at Ava averting her gaze quickly faded when Ava's cheeks began to flush. 

"Ava…" Beatrice began softly. 

Beatrice reached up to touch her fingers to Ava's chin, adding the slightest pressure to to turn Ava's head so their eyes met. Ava's pupils were blown wide, her breaths were coming out shakier and… Oh.

She'd seen that look before. 

There was that anticipation again. A want to try and explore and to understand everything that makes Ava tick. 

Everything that makes Ava look at her like _this._

"You trust me, right?" 

Ava's voice was quiet as she nodded again. "Yeah." 

"Can I try something?" 

She knew that Ava could see where this was going as she nodded quickly. 

Slowly, Beatrice brought her hand down to Ava's throat. As she spread her fingers out her fingertips found Ava's pulse as it throbbed against her touch. 

She felt Ava take another breath and hold it. 

Beatrice added a bit of pressure and felt a quiet rumble in Ava's throat, a sound that never made it past Ava's lips but if Beatrice had to guess, it would have been the closest to a moan that she would have heard from the girl. 

She already knew the answer, but Beatrice still found herself asking, 

"Ava… Do you like this?" 

She gave her fingers an experimental flex, tightening her hold ever so slightly. 

Ava’s head tipped back against the tree, eyes fluttering shut as a choked whine struggled to make its way through her lips. 

Beatrice needed to hear Ava say it.

"Yes." She gasped. 

And oh, if Ava's confirmation didn't send a flood of images through her mind. 

It was so much. 

Almost too much. 

Beatrice took the final step forward so that she was pressed fully against Ava and used her hold on her neck to turn Ava's head to the side. 

She leaned in a pressed a kiss to the spot beneath her ear. 

"I mean this in the nicest possible way, but you're killing me." She said quietly. 

Ava's laugh was soft and Beatrice felt the rumble beneath her fingers. 

"Believe me, the feeling is mutual." 

Beatrice nipped at Ava's earlobe, smiling at the way Ava whimpered again. 

"I don't know what I want." Beatrice admitted "Or how far I can take this right now…" 

She trailed slow, lingering kisses against Ava's jaw and paused for a moment to rest her forehead against her cheek. 

Her desires were hard to articulate, Beatrice knew that she was comfortable in what they had together but every moment from their neck kissing, the playful bites, the making out and now this, pressed together with her hands around Ava's neck only served to remind Beatrice of what could come next. 

"But I know I don't want this to stop." Beatrice continued. "And I know that I want you." 

Ava made another quiet whimper and Beatrice drew back enough to look into her eyes and knew instantly that the desire she could feel was what was reflected in Ava's eyes. 

"It's not going to stop." Ava said quickly. "We can keep doing this at whatever pace you want we're learning each other. It's good."

Beatrice brushed her lips against Ava's and sighed when Ava opened her mouth to draw her in closer. 

She dropped her hand from Ava's throat to reach for her hip, to try and press closer to Ava's body and Beatrice felt Ava's arms curl around her neck. 

"It's good." Ava said again against her lips. "We're good." 

They were good. 

Beatrice pulled away slightly, just enough to glance over her shoulder back towards the house. 

"I think we're done training for now." She decided. 

"Oh?" Ava smirked. "What did you have in mind?" 

Beatrice's answer was to lean in and give a well placed bite to the side of Ava's neck. 

There was one thing that Beatrice knew though. 

She was going to have to have a serious discussion about her vows in the near future. 

\--

Mary shivered as she huddled closer against the wall of the house, flicking the ash from her cigarette before taking another drag. 

The rain had picked up considerably and as much as Mary was enjoying their time here… She missed Spain. 

She missed the sun and the warmth. 

Ava and Beatrice had been gone for quite some time, but when the rain bad begun to pick up Mary was surprised that they hadn't made a quick return. 

She knew they were committed to their training but this was next level. 

Eventually the pair emerged from the trees hand in hand and completely soaked to the bone. 

Not that it affected the smiles on their faces though. 

They both faltered when they saw Mary and for a moment as she looked at Beatrice she felt like a parent catching her kid sneaking around with their girlfriend. 

"You look like you had fun." Mary said as they got closer. 

Beatrice glanced at Ava. "Yes well, we made good progress. A few new discoveries."

Ava's quiet snort was anything but subtle. 

"You should get in before you catch a cold." Mary replied. 

"You go on ahead." Ava said softly. "Go shower, I'll go after you." 

"You sure?" 

Ava hummed. "I can't get sick, I don't think. Go, I'll catch up." 

With a squeeze of her hand and a smile that was only ever reserved for Ava, Beatrice went into the house. 

Ava moved closer and as she did, Mary finally noticed the fresh scattering of hickeys along Ava's neck. 

"Training, huh?" 

Ava saw where Mary's eyes were trained and laughed, reaching up to rub her hand over the skin. 

"I swear we do actually train." Ava said. "We just uh… Got distracted." 

She had a look on her face that Mary knew there was more that she wanted to say, so she settled for staying silent as she finished her cigarette. 

"So Beatrice choked me." 

Of all the things Ava could have said, Mary never would have expected that. 

It caught her off guard enough that the smoke caught in her lungs and what followed was a solid ten seconds of painful coughing. 

"I'm sorry, what?" 

Ava hummed. "It was an accident." 

"But…?" 

Ava's gaze was serious as she looked at Mary. "It was really fucking hot." 

"...Shit okay. Dark horse moment here, never would have expected that." 

"So that's a thing now, apparently." 

"I was going to ask how Bea reacted but judging from those," She gestured to Ava's neck. "I'm guessing it was good and please, spare me the details." 

"Oh yeah." Ava nodded. 

"Am I going to have to give you the birds and the bees talk?" Mary asked apprehensively. 

Please say no. 

"Probably." Ava replied.

Jesus Christ. 

She was too sober for this. 

"But not any time soon." 

Okay. 

Mary could work with that. 

"Totally normal to find choking hot right?" Ava asked. 

Mary laughed. "Yes Ava, don't worry." 

"Cool cool cool." Ava nodded to herself. 

"Now that's my parenting done for the day. I'm going to go inside and pretend this never happened. You go and get changed and for the love of God, leave your shoes at the door. Lilith will kill you otherwise." 

Ava threw a lazy salute as she followed Mary into the house. 

\--

Lilith was making tea while Camila leant against the counter beside her, tapping away on her tablet. 

Mary had headed out early to get supplies and Ava and Beatrice had been tucked away in their room since Lilith and Ava had returned from their run. 

It was a peaceful morning. 

But as she heard movement upstairs and the subsequent sounds of feet descending, Lilith sighed and reached for two more mugs. 

She knew deep in her soul that this peace wasn't going to last. 

It was a surprise when the owner of those footsteps turned out to be Beatrice, there was an energy around her that they were far more used to seeing on her other half. 

"Good morning!" Camila greeted brightly. 

"Morning." 

Lilith turned to hand Beatrice her mug and raised an eyebrow at her friend. "You seem extra chipper this morning."

"Do I?" Beatrice accepted the drink and cradled it in her hands. 

There was something calculating in Beatrice's eyes, a steady determination mixed with… Amusement? 

Oh, she was planning something. 

"Okay. Spit it out." 

Beatrice smirked. 

Yep. Definitely planning something. 

"I'd like to fight you again." Beatrice said. 

Lilith matched that smirk. "Is that so? You're really not giving up on this are you?" 

Camila glanced between them. 

There had always been a steady but friendly rivalry between them. United by their needs to prove themselves and to be the best they can. 

Since the Tarask, Lilith had maintained an edge over Beatrice and Lilith knew that Beatrice wouldn't quit until one of them beat her. 

"Yes. Today, if you're up for it." 

"I'm always up for it." Lilith replied. 

"But I have stipulations." 

"I'm listening." 

"I have someone fight with me." 

"That's fine, Mary is out but I'm sure Camila is more than happy to help." 

Neither of them chose to comment on the way Camila took a small step away. 

Beatrice smiled. "Actually, I had someone else in mind." 

Ava popped up behind Beatrice and she must have used the halo to phase through a wall or something because both Lilith and Camila startled at her sudden appearance. 

She was grinning as she slung an arm over Beatrice's shoulder. "Hi, I'm someone." 

They both grinned. 

Ava was such an influence on Beatrice, Lilith knew for certain that these two idiots had planned this dramatic entrance. 

Lilith raised an eyebrow at Ava's puppy dog excitement and Beatrice's watchful stare as she sipped her drink. 

"You really want to do this?" Lilith asked. 

"Yes. Unless you're scared to lose?" 

Ava had gotten lucky with her punch the last time they had fought and she knew they they had been working hard together with Ava's training. 

She knew better than to underestimate them both. 

"Scared? That's cute." 

Beatrice took another sip of her drink. 

"We drop you, we win, deal?" Ava asked. 

She took the mug from Beatrice's hand and stole a sip for herself, ignoring the brief furrowing of Beatrice's eyebrows as she looked at her girlfriend. 

"Deal." 

\--

Ava smiled as she took in the backyard as everyone took up their positions. 

Mary and Camila had settled onto the step with an obscene amount of snacks. 

Lilith was across from her in all her sleeveless training gear glory. 

Beside her, Beatrice was rolling out her shoulders. 

The sun was shining, the birds were singing… 

And they were going to kick Lilith's ass. 

Oh, it was a good day. 

"Are you both going to stand around or are we doing this?" Lilith asked. 

Ava turned her attention to Beatrice and grinned again, Beatrice's own expression was much more focused though she still offered Ava a small smile. 

"Are you ready?" Beatrice asked. 

"Oh yeah. Born ready. You?" 

Beatrice's smile grew. "Yes."

"Any last words of advice?" 

"Remember our training, stay aware of my position and if she knocks you down, make sure you land on your feet."

"I'm always aware of your position." Ava replied with a wiggle of her eyebrows. 

Beatrice's head dropped to the side she levelled Ava with a stare that screamed _Really?_

"So I'm just gonna put a pin in the flirting for now huh?" 

"Tell you what…" Beatrice stepped into Ava's space and dropped her voice. "We win, I'll make sure you get a good reward." 

Oh. 

Oh Ava's brain has vacated the premises. 

Drop Lilith. Reward from girlfriend. 

Nice. 

"Bring it on Lilith!" Ava called. 

She didn't wait for an answer, instead opting to call on the halo and let her speed carry her forward. 

Ava drew her fist back and waited for Lilith to raise her guard, instead of throwing her punch Ava kept moving forward and phased through Lilith, turning around as she got behind her. 

Lilith turned as Ava finally threw her punch, blocking it with ease. 

Beatrice was quick on Ava's heels, planting her foot down and bringing her leg around for a sweeping kick. Lilith turned slightly to catch her leg with her free hand. 

Over Lilith's shoulder, Ava and Beatrice shared a look and Ava grinned. 

This was still their dance. They knew each other's movements, they knew how to do this. 

"Let's dance." Ava said. 

She broke from Lilith's hold and darted to the side. 

Ava was the distraction. Constantly on the move and trying to keep Lilith's focus on her. 

Lilith wasn't stupid though, she knew what they were trying to do and with every punch she threw, Lilith knew to keep her focus split between Ava and Beatrice. 

It was hard to keep grounded, to know which way she was coming and going as the fight continued, trying to keep Beatrice in her sights helped but even then Ava found herself on the receiving end of more than a few punches. 

As Ava steadied herself she watched Lilith use her own speed to get around Beatrice, ready to throw another strike. 

Ava used the halo to bridge the distance as Lilith landed a blow to Beatrice's chest, sending her reeling backwards and threw her arm out to curl her hand around Beatrice's wrist, holding tight to stop Beatrice from falling to the ground. 

For a second they stared at each other, an almost breathless laugh passed from Beatrice's lips in the moment before Ava pulled her upright. 

"Is this the culmination of your training?" Lilith asked. 

Ava glanced back at Beatrice and raised an eyebrow. 

Beatrice gave a small nod. 

"What's with the villain style gloating moment?" Ava asked. "You totally could have taken us both out right then." 

Lilith smiled. 

She was enjoying this as much as they were. 

"Wanted to give you a chance." 

"Your mistake." Beatrice said. 

They moved forward together, Ava drawing her left fist back while Beatrice drew her right. 

They were mirroring each other, a head on assault of punches and kicks forcing Lilith onto the retreat. 

Beatrice eased up on her assault as Ava took another step forward turning her foot to the side and planting it firmly on the the ground, turning and reaching for Beatrice once more. 

Ava took hold of both of Beatrice's wrists and felt Beatrice do the same, a solid steadying hold. 

Ava called on her strength as Beatrice moved forward, an anchor point as she helped Beatrice into the air, launching her forward so that she could land a solid kick to Lilith's side. 

Lilith stumbled backwards as Ava guided Beatrice back to the ground, letting go of her so that Ava could throw herself forward, throwing her punch and even though Lilith managed to lift her arms to block them, the burst from the halo was still enough to push her back more. 

She met Ava's gaze and for the first time, Lilith looked genuinely worried. 

This had been the moment they'd planned for. 

Synergy at its finest. 

Moving as one. 

Ava phased as Beatrice sprinted through her, jumping to kick out, her strike landing true in Lilith's stomach, sending their friends doubling over. 

As Beatrice landed, Ava channeled her strength into her right hand, enough that she could see the glow of energy rising from it and sprinted forward. 

Beatrice dropped to one knee, bowing her head as Ava reached her, using her girlfriend as a jump pad and leaping into the air. 

In the few seconds of weightlessness as she flew through the air, Ava got to watch Lilith lift her head. 

Saw the fear in her eyes. 

The realisation of what was about to happen. 

The briefest flicker of pride. 

But overwhelmingly? Ava saw resignation. 

Game, set and match. 

She threw her first forward, the blow connecting with Lilith's right cheek and maybe on its own, it may have stumbled her. 

With the halo though? 

Through the burst of gold, Lilith crumpled, knocked clean off of her feet as they both crashed to the ground. 

Ava stumbled to stop herself from landing face first. 

Somewhere behind her, there was a loud cheer that could have only come from Mary and Ava grinned to herself as she stood straight once more. 

She glanced to Beatrice and grinned as her girlfriend smiled back at her. 

They'd done it. 

Ava turned back to Lilith and watched her friend tentatively touch her fingers to her cheek, wincing at the bruise already blooming. 

It was pure coincidence that the bruise was in the same spot as the one Lilith had given Beatrice only a few days earlier. 

"I have to admit…" Lilith began with a reluctant sigh. "I didn't see this coming. I was wrong to have doubted you both." 

Ava laughed and held out her hand, Lilith took it willingly and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. 

"Let's be real, if it had just been you and me? I wouldn't have stood a chance." 

"I don't think you're giving yourself enough credit." Lilith replied seriously. 

Ava dropped Lilith's hand and kicked at the dirt as she shrugged. 

"Yeah well, teamwork right?" 

"Teamwork." Lilith nodded. She looked over Ava's shoulder. "Well done." 

Beatrice came to a stop next to Ava and nodded her thanks. "Good fight." 

"Mary is never going to let me live this down is she?" Lilith asked. 

"Oh never." Ava laughed. "You're fucked." 

Lilith scowled and Ava didn't need to look sideways to know that her girlfriend was shooting her a disapproving look. 

"Ava…" 

"Language!" 

Ava laughed and held both of her hands up. "Sorry! I'm sorry!" 

\--

Beatrice was in the process of setting aside the laundry when she heard the door open and close with a soft click. 

"So…" Ava drew the word out for several seconds and Beatrice couldn't help but smile as she set the final shirt aside and turned to face her. 

Ava was leaning against the door, dressed in her usual sweatpants and t-shirt. The only change was the new addition of a burgundy hoodie that Mary had given her after their win against Lilith. 

Mary must have picked up the wrong size though because while Ava tended to prefer a baggier fit, this hoodie was easily at least two sizes too big. 

It made her look even cuter though. 

"So?" Beatrice prompted, though she strongly suspected that she knew where this was going. 

"I seem to recall there being talk of a reward?" Ava said. 

She knew Ava wouldn't have forgotten, the rest of their day had been spent with their friends as they'd reflected on the fight and then just gotten comfortable in each others presence. 

"That's right." Beatrice replied. She walked closer to Ava. "I'm surprised that you didn't mention it on our walk though." 

Ava hummed and tipped her head back against the door, she folded her hands behind her back. 

"It was tough but I'm working on being patient." Ava said. Her eyes sparkled. "Besides, it's cold tonight and uh… I figured we'd want to be comfortable." 

Beatrice laughed. "Sounds like you have something very specific in mind." 

"Oh I'm more than happy to accept whatever it is you want to give me." Ava replied. 

Her voice had gotten lower, flirty didn't feel like the right word for it. 

Usually when Ava flirted, her voice was light and high. 

This was something else. 

Beatrice brought one of her hands up to brush Ava's hair behind her ear and let her fingers trail across Ava's cheek and down to her jaw. 

"We did good right?" Ava asked quietly. 

"We did." Beatrice agreed. " _You_ did. You were phenomenal out there." 

She had never doubted in Ava's ability and all of the work she had put in during their training had really shown in the way she had carried herself today. 

Beatrice was so proud. 

And considering what she had learned about Ava since their relationship had started, Beatrice had a good idea on how she could make this a reward for Ava to remember. 

Beatrice made sure to hold Ava's gaze as she brought her fingers down to Ava's neck, pausing to feel the fluttering pulse. 

"I was so proud of you Ava." Beatrice said gently, letting her own voice drop. 

She felt Ava's pulse pick up. 

"I'm still so proud of you." She continued. "I keep thinking about you during that fight and how beautiful you looked." 

Ava's lips parted slightly as she drew a breath. 

Beatrice flattened her palm against Ava's neck and felt the muscles contract as Ava swallowed. 

"I did everything you told me to, everything you taught me." Ava whispered.

"You did." Beatrice stepped closer and pressed her thumb against Ava's pulse. "You were such a good girl." 

And as strange and foreign the words felt leaving her lips, Beatrice couldn't deny the thrill that ran through her as she said them. 

Even more than her own reaction, the way Ava's pupils dilated right in front of her and the quiet whimper that she made, only reinforced Beatrice's decision. 

She moved to press a kiss below Ava's ear. 

"You like it when I tell you how good you are, don't you Ava?" 

"Oh my God." Ava whispered, there was a dull thud as her head hit the door. "Yeah… Yeah I do." 

"Good, because you know what I like?" 

"What?" 

"Finding all of the ways to make you feel the way you do right now." Beatrice said. 

She moved to brush her lips across Ava's and smiled as Ava tried to follow her as she pulled away. 

Her thoughts drifted back to that night back at the cottage, when everything was still so new and Ava had given Beatrice her first hickey and felt an idea form. 

"I'd like to try something, if you're willing." Beatrice said. 

Ava didn't even hesitate. "Whatever it is, I'm in." 

Beatrice laughed and took a step back, even if it earned her a slight pout. 

She took hold of Ava's hand and pulled her away from the door and led her towards the bed, turning them so that she could ease Ava down so that she was seated on the edge. 

"You'll tell me to stop if it's too much for you?" Beatrice asked. 

Ava seemed to be having trouble making words work in her favour, managing to nod and replying with a breathless, "Yeah." 

Beatrice started by bracing her hands on Ava's shoulders and lifted herself onto the bed, settling her knees on either side of Ava's thighs and settled her weight in Ava's lap. 

Ava looked caught between lost, completely overwhelmed and thrilled. 

As Beatrice took a gentle hold of Ava's jaw with both hands and tipped her head up, Ava seemed to remember how to move her limbs and brought her own hands up to tentatively rest on Beatrice's waist. 

"How are you liking your reward so far?" Beatrice asked. 

"Honestly I think I'm about to combust and you haven't even done that much yet." Ava answered honestly. Beatrice could feel Ava's thumbs rub small circles against her skin. "But I mostly just love that you're comfortable enough to be like this with me." 

"You make it easy to feel comfortable." Beatrice replied. "And as for that other part? I guess I'm just going to have to fix that, aren't I?" 

Before Ava could reply, Beatrice had closed the distance to kiss her. 

\--

It took a conscious effort for Ava to drag herself out of bed.

After getting to spend a decent amount of the night learning how it felt to have Beatrice straddling her, Ava felt pretty confident in thinking that fuck all else mattered.

But she’d made a commitment and so it was with great reluctance that she removed herself from Beatrice’s embrace and out of the bed.

Since Beatrice had moved into her room, Ava had mastered her morning routine without disturbing her from her sleep, grabbing her phone from the nightstand and using its flashlight to guide her through the room.

As she unlocked the phone, Ava frowned as she found two texts waiting for her.

_Lilith  
_ _Don’t bother getting up tomorrow, I think you’ve earned the day off._

_Lilith  
_ _I would have told you in person but Camila warned me that you might be… Preoccupied._

Judging from the timestamp, Camila would have been right and as thrilled as Ava was to find her morning suddenly free, it was Lilith’s use of ‘preoccupied’ that had Ava laughing quietly to herself.

Like, Lilith hadn’t been wrong but still.

She heard movement behind her.

“Ava?”

Beatrice’s voice was scratchy and heavy with sleep and as Ava turned around she saw Beatrice sit up slightly.

“Sorry.” Ava replied quietly, setting her phone on the table and climbed back on the bed.

Instead of slipping back under the covers, Ava opted to stretch her weight on top of Beatrice.

“Don’t you have to go meet Lilith?” Beatrice asked. She glanced down at the blankets. “Also you’re pinning my hands right now.”  
  
“Turns out she gave me the day off.” Ava replied. She leant in to kiss Beatrice. “So we get a lie in.”

Beatrice smiled and dropped back down to the pillows. “Good. Get back under here.”  
  
Ava didn’t need to be told twice, deftly rolling over and slipping under the covers so that she could slide up against Beatrice who turned onto her side and opened her arms ready to embrace Ava once more.

Beatrice nuzzled closer, burying her face into Ava’s hair and rubbed a hand along her back.  
  
“You’re always so warm.” Beatrice sniffed, already sounding like she was on the verge of drifting back to sleep.

Ava laughed and pressed a kiss to Beatrice’s neck. 

“Go back to sleep, Bea.”

Later they’d get up and eat breakfast with their family and while Ava didn’t know what the rest of the day would bring, Ava knew that none of it would matter.

She was happy.

That was all she could ask for.

Ava closed her eyes, and let sleep claim her once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Snapshots is gonna start getting spicyyyyyy  
> one day
> 
> as always, you can find me [here](https://yashastrongarms.tumblr.com/)  
> Also i'm on [twitter!](https://twitter.com/RogueThirteen94)


End file.
